DORIS  E.  SKINNER 


3 


COO 


TEDDY:   HER   BOOK 


IUUI.  .0?  CALIF.  LIBRARY.  LOS  ANGELES 


THEODORA'S  KACK.   I;OSY   WITH   r.i.rsiir.s.  APPKAUKD 

IX    TIIK    Ol'K.MM;.  - •  -   Fr<»l/i>s/ii>-rc. 


TEDDY:  HEE  BOOK 


)  of 


BY 


ANNA   CIIAPIN    RAY 


ILLUSTRATED    BY    VESL'ER   L.  GEORGE 


BOSTON 

LITTLE,   BROWN,   AND   COMPANY 
1901 


Copyright,  1898, 
BY  LITTLE,  BROWN,  AND  COMPANY, 


All  rights  reserved. 


JOHN   WILSON  AND  SON,  CAMBRIDGE,  U.S.A. 


"  Spring's  hands  are  always  full  of  rosy  flowers, 
Unopened  buds  to  deck  each  field  and  tree. 
We  love  and  ivatch  them  through  the  long,  sweet  hours, 
Not  for  the  buds,  but  tvhat  the  buds  ivill  be. 

"  Life's  hands  are  full  of  buds.     She  comes  on  singing, 

With  radiant  eyes,  across  Youth's  golden  gate ; 
We  smile  to  see  the  burden  she  is  bringing, 
And  for  the  Summer  are  content  to  tvait." 


2132273 


THEODORA'S  FACE,  ROSY  WITH  BLUSHES,  APPEARED 

IN  THE  OPENING Frontispiece 

THEODORA  WEXT  FLYING  ACROSS  THE  ROAD     Page  69 

"'WHAT   DO   YOU    THINK   OF    THIS?'    SHE    DE 
MANDED  " 100 

"  TEDDY,  DEAR,  THIS  is   MY   BROTHER   ARCHIE, 

COME  AT  LAST" ,     .     129 

'"GlVE     ME     MY     FAX     AND     GLOVES,     Hu,'     SHE 

SAID" 256 

SOMETHING   IN   THE   EXPRESSION   OF   THE   BLUE 
EYES    ABOVE    HER    MADE    HER    OWN    EYES 

DROOP  .  272 


TEDDY:    HER  BOOK 


CHAPTER  ONE 

THE  five  McAlisters  were  gathered  in  the 
dining-room,  one  rainy  night  in  late 
August.  In  view  of  the  respective  dimensions 
of  the  family  circle  and  the  family  income,  ser 
vants  were  few  in  the  McAlister  household,  and 
division  of  labor  was  the  order  of  the  day  Old 
Susan  had  cleared  away  the  table  and  brought 
in  the  lamp;  then  she  retired  to  the  kitchen, 
leaving  the  young  people  to  themselves. 

Hope  was  darning  stockings.  She  had  one 
of  Hubert's  socks  drawn  on  over  her  hand,  which 
showed,  white  and  dainty,  through  the  great, 
ragged  hole.  Hubert  sat  near  her  with  little 
Allyn  on  his  knee,  tiding  over  a  crisis  in  the 
young  man's  temper  by  showing  him  pictures  in 
the  dilapidated  Mother  Goose  which  had  done 
duty  for  successive  McAlisters,  from  seventeen- 
year-old  Hope  down. 

i 


2  TEDDY 

"Stop  kicking  brother,"  he  commanded,  as 
Allyn  lifted  up  his  voice  and  his  heels  in  vigor 
ous  protest  against  things  in  general,  and  the 
approach  of  the  sandman  in  particular.  "  Lis 
ten,  Allyn, — 

'  There  was  a  little  man, 
And  he  had  a  little  gun, 
And  his  bullets  were  made  of  lead,  lead,  lead.' " 

Theodora  appeared  on  the  threshold  of  the 
great  china  closet,  where  she  was  washing  the 
cups  and  plates.  She  had  a  dish-cloth  in 
one  hand  and  three  or  four  spoons  in  the 
other. 

"You  don't  put  enough  emphasis  into  it, 
Hu,"  she  said  mockingly.  "This  is  the  way  it 
should  sound,  like  this, — 

<  There  was  a  little  cow, 
And  it  had  a  little  calf, 
And  it  would  n't  ever  go  to  bed,  bed,  bed.' 

Never  mind,  Allyn,  sister  will  come  in  a  few 
minutes  and  put  your  nightie  on.  Oh,  Babe,  I 
wish  you  'd  hurry  and  put  away  these  dishes." 

But  Babe,  baptismally  known  as  Phebe,  was 
engaged  in  tickling  Allyn's  toes,  with  the 
praiseworthy  intention  of  making  him  kick  the 
harder.  Accordingly,  she  was  deaf  to  the  voice 


HER  BOOK 


of  Theodora,  who  was  forced  to  put  away  the 
cups  herself.  She  did  it  with  a  bumping  im 
patience,  grumbling  the  while. 

"  I  do  wish  that  everlasting  old  Susan  would 
wash  these  things.  The  idea  of  my  being  tied 
to  a  dish-pan,  all  my  days,  and  Babe  never  will 
help  a  bit!  It's  not  fair."  She  set  down  a 
cup  with  a  protesting  whack  which  threatened 
to  wreck  its  handle. 

"  Oh,  Teddy  ?  "  Hubert  called,  from  the  next 
room. 

"  Well  ?  "  Her  face  cleared,  as  it  always  did 
at  the  voice  of  her  twin  brother. 

"  Drop  something  ?  " 

"  No.  Wish  I  had.  I  'd  like  to  throw  this 
dish-pan  into  the  street. " 

"  'Most  through  ?  " 

"Never  shall  be.  Do  put  Allyn  down  and 
come  to  help  me." 

He  settled  the  child,  book  and  all,  in  a  cor 
ner  of  the  old  haircloth  sofa  which  ran  across 
the  end  of  the  room,  and,  with  his  hands  in  his 
pockets,  he  sauntered  into  the  china  closet  and 
sat  down  on  the  little  step-ladder  that  stood 
there,  ready  to  lead  to  an  ascent  to  the  upper 
shelves. 

"  What 's  the  matter,  to-night,  Teddy  ?  "  he 


4  TEDDY 

asked,  sympathetically  tweaking  the  end  of  her 
long  brown  pigtail. 

"The  weather,  I  think,"  she  replied,  as  she 
threw  a  dish-towel  at  him.  "I  don't  like  to 
wash  dishes,  and  I  don't  like  rainy  days,  and  I 
don't  like  — " 

"Nothin'  nor  nobody.  Never  mind  filling  up 
the  list.  You  've  a  crick  in  your  temper,  that 's 
all.  It  will  be  gone  in  the  morning.  Here, 
give  me  a  towel,  and  I'll  help  wipe." 

It  was  a  service  he  had  often  performed  be 
fore.  The  twins  were  close  friends,  and  some 
of  their  most  confidential  talks  had  been  held 
over  the  steaming  dish-water.  They  finished 
their  task  together ;  then  Hubert  linked  his  arm 
in  that  of  his  sister  and  came  out  into  the  din 
ing-room,  where  Hope,  with  the  stocking  still 
drawn  on  over  her  hand,  was  vainly  trying  to 
rescue  Allyn  from  the  torments  imposed  on  him 
by  Phebe. 

"Don't,  Babe,"  she  urged.  "Don't  you  sec 
how  it  makes  him  cry  ?  Why  can't  you  let 
him  alone?  He  is  always  cross  at  bed 
time.  " 

"So  are  you,"  Phebe  retorted  defiantly. 
"When  she  comes,  Hope  McAlister,  I  do  hope 
she  '11  give  it  to  you  good." 


HER  BOOK 


Hope  flushed,  and  her  sensitive  chin  quivered 
a  little. 

"Let 's  hope  not,"  she  said  gently.  "Do  be 
quiet,  there  's  a  dear  Babe.  It  is  almost  jour 
bedtime. " 

"But  I  sha'n't  go  to  bed,"  proclaimed  Phebe 
rebelliously. 

"Phebe!" 

Experience  had  taught  her  that  Sister  Hope, 
gentle  as  she  was,  must  be  obeyed  when  she 
spoke  in  that  tone,  and  Phebe  sullenly  yielded 
to  the  inevitable  and  became  quiet. 

Meanwhile,  Theodora  had  pounced  upon 
Allyn,  caught  him  up  in  her  strong  young 
arms,  cuddled  his  fluffy  yellow  head  against 
her  cheek,  and  gone  away  upstairs,  whither 
Phebe  followed  them  with  a  crushing  dignity 
which  sought  for  no  good-night  kiss.  Hubert 
cast  himself  down  on  the  old  sofa  and  fell  to 
rummaging  his  sister's  basket.  He  smiled  a 
little,  as  she  showed  him  the  vast  hole  in  the 
toe  of  his  sock ;  but  it  was  some  minutes  before 
he  spoke.  Then  he  said  slowly,  — 

"  Never  mind,  Hope.  It 's  in  the  air,  and 
we  all  feel  it." 

He  was  silent  again.  Upstairs,  they  could 
hear  the  tap,  tap  of  Teddy's  energetic  heels, 


6  TEDDY 

as  she  moved  to  and  fro,  settling  the  two  chil 
dren  for  the  night.  Then  she  was  still,  while 
Allyn's  shrill,  childish  treble  rose  in  his  even 
ing  petition,  - 

"  Now  I  lay  me  down  a  shleep, 
I  tray  a  Lo'  la  tol  a  teep, 
I  ta  die  afo'  I  wake, 
Tray  a  Lo'  la  tol  a  take. 
It  I  at  a  Jedu'  shlake.    A-nen !  " 

Ten  minutes  later,  she  came  back  to  the  din 
ing-room  and  threw  herself  down  on  the  sofa, 
with  her  head  on  Hubert's  knee  and  her  elbow 
in  the  orderly  work-basket. 

"Do  you  know,"  she  said  abruptly;  "I  think 
our  venerable  father  is  a  goose. " 

"Teddy  !"     Hope's  tone  was  remonstrant. 

"I  can't  help  it,  if  it  isn't  respectful;  I  do. 
He  's  lived  long  enough  to  know  better,  and  he 
ought  to  be  put  to  bed  without  his  supper,  even 
if  it  is  his  wedding  day."  She  started  up,  to 
add  emphasis  to  her  words ;  but  Hubert  seized 
her  two  long  braids  of  hair  and  drew  her  head 
down  on  his  knee  again. 

"Calm  yourself,  Teddy,"  he  said,  bending 
forward  to  peer  into  her  face.  "  You  are  worse 
than  the  children.  I  told  Hope  that  it  was  in 
the  air,  to-night." 


HER  BOOK 


"  Why  should  n't  it  be  ?  "  she  demanded. 
"Here  are  we,  three  grown-up  children,  sit 
ting  in  a  row  at  home  and  knowing  that,  this 
very  evening,  our  own  father  is  being  married 
to  a  stranger.  It 's  horrid. " 

"It  may  not  be  so  bad,  Teddy,"  Hope  said 
consolingly,  as  she  rolled  up  Hubert's  socks  in 
a  ball  and  tossed  them  at  her  brother.  "You 
know  we  saw  her  once  and  we  all  liked 
her." 

"  That  was  before  we  knew  what  was  going 
on.  You  may  think  a  person  is  pretty  and  nice 
and  all  that;  but  that  doesn't  mean  you  want 
her  for  a  mother. " 

"I  don't  believe  she'll  be  so  bad,"  Hubert 
observed  judicially.  "She's  been  to  college 
and  she  knows  a  good  deal,  and  she  's  pretty 
and  not  easily  shocked.  Don't  you  remember 
how  she  laughed  at  Babe's  awful  speeches  ?  " 

"I  remember  just  how  she  looked,"  Hope 
said.  "  She  must  have  been  amused  at  our 
innocence.  I  don't  see  why  the  reason  never 
struck  us  that  we  were  all  dragged  over  to  the 
hotel  to  see  her. " 

"Because  we  had  some  respect  for  papa," 
Theodora  said  tartly.  "I  don't  see  why  he 
needs  to  go  and  get  married  again,  and  I  won't 


8  TEDDY 

say  I  'm  glad  to  see  her,  when  she  comes. 
There ! " 

"Ted  is  afraid  that  Madame  will  make  her 
toe  the  mark, "  Hubert  said  teasingly.  "  You  've 
had  your  own  way  too  long,  Miss  Teddy,  and 
now  you  will  have  to  come  to  terms.  Isn't 
that  about  the  truth  of  it  ?  " 

The  clock  struck  eight,  and  Hope  raised  her 
head. 

"Listen,"  she  said.  "  Is  n't  it  a  strange  feel 
ing  that  now,  in  the  middle  of  the  lights  and 
the  music  and  the  wedding  march,  papa,  our 
own  father,  is  being  married,  while  we  sit  here 
just  as  we  always  do  ?  " 

The  three  young  faces  grew  grave  at  the 
thought,  Hope's  with  the  sweet  romance  of  her 
years,  Hubert's  with  interest,  and  Theodora's 
with  open  rebellion.  For  some  time  they  sat 
there,  silent.  Then  Hope  spoke,  with  the  evi 
dent  design  of  changing  the  subject. 

"Does  anybody  know  about  the  new  people 
on  the  corner  ?  " 

"  Only  what  papa  said,  that  it 's  a  woman 
and  her  son.  She  's  a  widow,  her  husband  was 
killed  in  the  Massawan  bridge  accident,  and 
the  son  terribly  hurt. " 

"  Have  they  come  ?  " 


HER  BOOK 


"Yes,  I  saw  them  yesterday,"  Hubert  said. 

"  What  are  they  like  ?  "  Hope  and  Theodora 
asked  in  a  breath. 

"  They  were  driving  past  the  post-office,  when 
I  went  after  the  noon  mail.  They  went  by  so 
fast  I  couldn't  see  much,  though." 

"  How  did  you  know  who  it  was  ?  "  Theodora 
inquired,  rolling  over  till  she  could  look  up 
into  her  brother's  face. 

"  Mr.  Saunders  asked  me  if  I  knew  they  were 
our  new  neighbors.  They  came  Tuesday,  but 
they  stayed  at  the  hotel  till  yesterday  morning, 
while  the  house  was  being  put  in  order." 

"What  did  they  look  like?"  Teddy  de 
manded. 

"  Like  all  the  rest  of  the  world,  as  far  as  I 
could  see." 

"Stop  teasing,  Hu,  and  tell  us,"  Hope  urged. 

"Really,  I  don't  know  much  about  them," 
Hubert  returned,  with  an  air  of  lazy  indiffer 
ence.  "Look  out,  Ted,  you're  tipping  over 
Hope's  basket.  One  would  think  we  'd  never 
had  any  new  neighbors  before,  from  the  way 
you  act." 

"  We  have  n't,  for  ages.  Tell  us,  Hu,  there  's 
a  dear,  what  are  they  like  ? " 

"  I  honestly  did  n't  have  a  chance  to  see  them, 


10  TEDDY 

Ted.  She  's  tall  and  pretty,  and  has  a  lot  of 
fuzzy  light  red  hair. " 

"Of  course  she  was  in  mourning,"  Hope 
said. 

"  Yes,  I  suppose  so.  At  least,  she  had  a  pile 
of  black  stuff  hanging  down  her  back.  I  don't 
see  why  women  should  pin  a  black  shawl  over 
their  heads,  when  somebody  dies ;  but  then  —  " 

"  How  old  is  the  son  ?  "  Theodora  interrupted. 

"  About  our  ages,  I  should  say. " 

"Did  he  look  ill  ?  "  Hope  asked  pitifully. 

"  No ;  only  pale. " 

"  What 's  the  matter  with  him,  -anyway  ?  " 
Theodora  inquired,  as  she  reached  out  for  her 
brother's  hand  and  fell  to  playing  with  his 
slender  brown  fingers. 

"  Papa  told  me  he  was  jammed  into  a  corner, 
with  a  lot  of  stuff  on  top  of  him,  and  his  back 
is  hurt  so  he  can't  walk." 

"  Ugh !  "  Theodora  wriggled.  "  How  horrid  ! 
Won't  he  get  over  it  ?  " 

"Some  time;  but  it  will  take  a  good  while." 

"  How  did  they  happen  to  come  here  ?  "  Hope 
said. 

"They  wanted  to  move  into  the  country. 
Dr.  Parker  is  their  regular  doctor,  and  he  ad 
vised  them  to  try  papa,  so  they  came  here  to  be 


HER  BOOK  11 


near  him.  Papa  told  me,  on  the  way  to  the 
station,  the  day  he  went.  He  had  a  great, 
thick  letter  from  Dr.  Parker  all  about 
it." 

"And  so  they  are  really  in  the  house.  It 
has  been  empty  so  long  that  I  can't  realize  it," 
Hope  observed  thoughtfully.  "Of  course,  if 
he  were  a  girl,  it  would  make  more  difference 
to  us. " 

"I  don't  see  why,"  Theodora  said,  as  she 
pulled  off  the  ribbon  from  one  of  her  braids, 
and  untied  the  bow. 

"Why,  because  —  Don't  you  see?  He  can't 
come  to  us,  and  we  can't  go  there;  that  is, 
none  of  us  but  Hu." 

"I  don't  see  why,"  Theodora  said  again. 

"It  wouldn't  be  proper,"  Hope  said  primly. 
"You  can't  go  to  call  on  a  boy,  Teddy.  Hu 
will  go  over,  in  a  day  or  two,  though." 

"Not  if  he  knows  himself,"  Hubert  returned. 
"  I  don't  like  freaks.  They  make  me  squirmy, 
and  I  never  know  what  to  say  to  them. " 

"Then  you're  a  pig,"  Theodora  answered, 
with  Saxon  frankness.  "  It  won't  be  decent,  if 
we  don't  try  to  make  it  pleasant  for  him.  He  's 
a  stranger  to  everybody,  and  shut  up  so  he  can't 
have  any  fun." 


12  TEDDY 

"  I  really  think  you  ought  to  go,  Hu, "  Hope 
said  gently. 

"I  don't  hanker  to,"  he  returned  laughingly. 
"Let  Ted  go,  if  she  wants  to." 

"  But  she  is  a  girl  —  "  Hope  began. 

"Not  more  than  half,"  Hubert  interrupted, 
with  a  laughing  grimace  at  his  twin  sister,  who 
stood  by  the  sofa,  looking  scornfully  down  at 
them. 

"You  can  do  as  you  like,  you  two,"  she  said. 
"  It  is  n't  a  question  of  whether  it 's  proper  or 
not;  it  is  simple  human  kindness,  and  as  soon 
as  I  can,  Hope  McAlister,  I  intend  to  get  ac 
quainted  with  him.  You  've  got  to  go  over 
there,  Hu,  and  take  me  with  you,  just  as  soon 
as  papa  comes  home."  She  tied  her  ribbon 
with  a  defiant  jerk. 

Rather  to  her  surprise,  Hubert  came  to  her 
support. 

"  You  're  all  right,  Teddy ;  go  ahead.  If 
papa  is  willing,  Hope,  I  don't  see  why  she 
can't  go  to  see  him  whenever  she  feels  like  it. 
It  isn't  in  my  line.  I  always  feel  as  if  people 
smashed  up  in  that  way  ought  to  sing  hymns 
all  the  time,  and  talk  about  Heaven.  That 's 
the  way  they  do  in  Sunday-school  books,  you 
know,  and  they  never  have  tempers  and  things. 


HER   BOOK  13 


I  should  n't  know  what  to  say  to  that  kind  of  a 
fellow,  and  I  should  only  make  a  mess  of  it; 
but  if  Ted  wants  to  play  the  good  Samaritan  to 
him,  let  her.  For  my  part,  I  like  whole  people, 
or  none  at  all."  He  squared  his  shoulders  and 
took  a  deep,  full  breath,  as  he  spoke,  in  all  the 
pride  of  his  boyish  strength. 

"We're  bound  to  see  a  good  deal  of  him 
anyway,"  Theodora  urged,  a  shade  less  hotly. 
"Right  next  door  and  a  patient  of  papa's,  it 
would  be  queer  not  to  pay  any  attention  to  him. 
He  's  all  alone,  too,  and  there  are  such  a  lot  of 
us.  I  don't  want  to  do  anything  out-of-the- 
way,  Hope,  but  I  do  wish  we  could  get  ac 
quainted  with  him." 

"Wait  till  papa  comes  home,  dear,"  Hope 
said,  with  the  gentleness  which  had  gained  her 
so  many  victories  over  her  tempestuous  young 
sisters.  "  That  will  only  be  two  or  three  weeks, 
and  he  will  know  what  is  the  best  thing  to  do." 

"Maybe,  unless  the  new  Madame  is  a  prig," 
Theodora  said  restively.  "  She  may  be  worse 
than  you  are,  Hope ;  but  I  doubt  it.  Never 
mind,"  she  added  sagely  to  herself,  as  she  left 
the  room;  "it  is  two  weeks  till  then,  and 
there  's  plenty  of  chance  for  things  to  happen, 
before  they  get  home." 


14  TEDDY 


CHAPTER  TWO 

LYING  far  at  the  side  of  the  little  suburban 
town,  the  Me  A  listers'  grounds  were  of 
a  size  and  beauty  which  entitled  them  to  be 
ranked  as  one  of  the  few  so-called  "  places  "  that 
dominated  the  closely-built  streets  of  the  town. 
The  land  ran  all  up  and  down  hill,  here  coaxed 
into  a  smooth-cropped  lawn,  there  carpeted  with 
the  moss  and  partridge  vines  which  had  been 
left  to  grow  over  the  rocks  in  undisturbed  pos 
session.  Here  and  there,  too,  were  outcrops  of 
the  rock,  ragged,  jutting  ledges  full  of  the 
nooks  and  crannies  which  delight  the  souls  of 
children  from  one  generation  to  another.  The 
grounds  had  been,  for  the  most  part,  left  as 
nature  had  made  them,  full  of  little  curves  and 
hillocks  and  dimples;  but  the  great  glory  of 
the  place  lay  in  its  trees.  No  conventional 
elms  and  maples  were  they,  but  the  native 
trees  of  the  forest,  huge-bodied  chestnuts,  tall, 
straight-limbed  oaks,  jagged  hickories  which 
blazed  bright  gold  in  the  autumn  and  shot  back 


HER   BOOK  15 


the  sunlight  from  every  leafy  twig,  and  an 
occasional  cedar  or  two,  from  which  came  the 
name  of  the  place,  The  Savins. 

Less  than  a  year  after  his  first  marriage,  Dr. 
McAlister  had  bought  the  place,  going  far  out 
of  the  town  for  the  purpose.  At  that  time,  he 
was  regarded  as  little  short  of  a  maniac,  to 
prefer  land  on  the  ridge  to  the  smooth,  conven 
tional  little  lawns  of  the  middle  of  the  town, 
where  one  house  was  so  like  another  that  the 
inhabitants  might  have  followed  the  example 
of  the  Mad  Tea  Party  and  moved  up  a  place, 
without  suffering  any  inconvenience  from  the 
change.  It  was  years  before  the  townspeople 
dropped  the  story  of  Mrs.  McAlistcr's  first 
attempt  to  choose  a  site  for  the  house,  of  her 
patiently  sitting  on  top  of  the  rail  fence,  while 
her  husband  borrowed  a  hatchet  and  manfully 
whacked  away  at  the  underbrush,  to  clear  a 
path  to  admit  her  to  her  new  domain. 

It  was  not  till  several  years  later  that  the 
house  was  built,  and  the  McAlisters  actually 
took  possession  of  their  new  home.  Phebe  was 
a  baby  then,  and  the  twins  were  so  young  that 
Theodora  formed  an  abiding  impression  that 
Indians  were  prone  to  lurk  behind  a  certain 
trio  of  great  chestnut-trees  at  the  far  side  of 


16  TEDDY 

the  grounds.  The  house  was  not  impressive. 
It  stood  on  one  of  the  three  hills,  and  originally 
it  had  been  small,  to  match  the  income  of  the 
young  doctor.  Only  a  year  later,  he  had  built 
on  a  new  wing;  and,  from  that  time  onward, 
the  spirit  of  reconstruction  had  entered  into  his 
soul.  Hope  was  wont  to  describe  the  house  as 
a  species  of  crazy  patchwork,  a  patch  for  each 
year,  and  each  patch  of  a  different  style.  From 
the  outside  point  of  view,  the  result  was  not  a 
success,  and  the  large  red  house,  low  and  ram 
bling,  had  grown  beyond  the  limits  of  the  hill 
and  sprawled  over  the  edge  on  a  pile  of  sup 
porting  piazzas  and  pillars.  Inside,  it  was 
altogether  delightful,  with  odd  windows  and 
corners  and  lounging  places,  sunshine  every 
where,  and  the  indescribable  air  of  half-shabby, 
well-used  cosiness  which  is  so  dear  to  every  one 
but  the  owners  thereof.  Strangers  felt  the 
charm  as  soon  as  they  crossed  the  threshold ; 
the  whole  atmosphere  of  the  place  was  hospit 
able  and  unconventional  and  homelike. 

Taken  all  in  all,  it  was  an  ideal  spot  for 
growing  children,  and  the  young  McAlisters 
had  made  the  most  of  it.  On  rainy  days,  they 
adjourned  to  the  attic,  where  they  bumped  their 
heads  against  the  low  rafters  of  the  gables,  or 


HER  BOOK  17 


ventured  on  long,  perilous  expeditions  upon  the 
beams  of  the  unfloored  extension  over  one  of 
the  wings.  They  were  gifted  with  good  imag 
inations,  these  three  older  children,  and  this 
carefully-trodden  territory  did  service  alter 
nately  as  Africa,  Fort  Ticonderoga,  and  a  run 
away  locomotive. 

But  that  was  only  during  stormy  weather. 
The  rest  of  the  time  they  lived  out-of-doors, 
in  winter  coasting  down  the  hills  on  sleds  or 
on  shingles,  according  to  the  state  of  the  crust; 
and  in  summer  running  riot  among  the  green 
things,  like  the  very  daisies  which  refused  to 
be  rooted  out  of  the  lawn.  A  neighborhood 
had  grown  up  around  them;  but  they  cared 
little  for  other  children.  A  wealth  of  imag 
ination,  and  plenty  of  room  to  let  it  work  itself 
out  had  developed  plays  of  long  standing  which 
were  as  charming  to  them  as  they  were  incom 
prehensible  to  their  young  neighbors. 

Then  the  change  had  come,  and  a  cloud  had 
fallen  on  the  home.  Baby  Allyn  had  been 
born,  and  on  the  same  day  the  bright,  happy 
young  mother,  boon  companion  of  her  children 
in  work  and  in  play,  had  fallen  asleep.  The 
shock  had  come  so  suddenly  and  unexpectedly 
that  there  had  been  no  time  to  plan  for  a  recon- 
2 


18  TEDDY 

struction.  Almost  before  they  realized  what 
had  occurred,  they  had  settled  back  into  their 
former  routine,  only  with  Hope  as-  the  nominal, 
and  old  Susan,  the  American  "help,"  as  the 
actual,  head  of  things.  In  a  larger  community, 
such  an  arrangement  would  have  been  out  of 
the  question;  but  Hope  was  a  womanly  child, 
and  Susan  had  been  in  the  family  for  years,  in 
a  relation  which  unfortunately  is  fast  dying 
out.  Accordingly,  the  doctor  had  been  content 
to  let  the  situation  go  on  from  day  to  day,  until 
the  hour  of  his  second  marriage,  two  or  three 
years  later. 

Back  in  a  far  corner  of  the  grounds,  close  to 
the  division  fence  towards  the  garden  of  the 
long-unoccupied  corner  house,  was  an  early 
apple-tree,  old  and  gnarly,  which  for  years  had 
been  known  as  "Teddy's  tree."  No  one  had 
ever  been  able  to  trace  the  beginning  of  her 
proprietorship  in  it;  but  she  had  assumed  it  as 
her  own  and  viewed  with  disfavor  any  encroach 
ments  on  the  part  of  the  others.  It  might  have 
been  a  case  of  squatter  sovereignty ;  but  it  was 
a  sovereignty  which  Theodora  stoutly  main 
tained.  Her  scarlet  hammock  hung  from  the 
lower  branches,  and  the  tree  was  full  of  com 
fortable  crooks  and  crotches  which  she  knew  to 


HER  BOOK  19 


the  least  detail.  Thither  she  was  wont  to  re 
tire  to  recover  her  lost  temper,  to  grieve  over 
her  girlish  sorrows,  to  dream  dreams  of  future 
glory,  and,  often  and  often,  to  lie  passive  and 
watch  the  white  clouds  drift  this  way  and  that 
in  the  great  blue  arch  above  her.  No  human 
being,  not  even  Hubert  himself,  could  have  told 
so  much  of  Theodora's  inner  life  as  this  old 
apple-tree,  if  only  the  power  of  speech  had  been 
granted  it. 

Three  days  later,  Theodora  was  curled  up  in 
a  fork  of  one  of  the  topmost  branches  of  her 
tree.  The  apples  were  beginning  to  ripen,  and 
she  had  eaten  until  even  her  hearty  young  appe 
tite  was  satisfied.  Then  she  crossed  her  feet, 
coiled  one  arm  around  the  branch  beside  her, 
and  fell  to  planning,  as  she  had  so  often  done 
before,  how  she  could  fulfil  her  two  great  am 
bitions,  to  go  to  college  in  the  first  place,  and 
then  to  become  a  famous  author.  It  was  always 
an  absorbing  subject  and,  losing  herself  in  it, 
she  became  totally  oblivious  of  her  surround 
ings.  Nearly  an  hour  later,  she  was  roused 
by  the  sound  of  approaching  voices,  and  she 
straightened  herself  and  peered  down  through 
the  branches. 

Just   below   her,   on   the   other  side  of   th$ 


20  TEDDY 

fence,  so  close  to  it  that  it  had  escaped  her 
notice,  was  a  light  bamboo  lounge,  covered  with 
a  pile  of  bright  cushions.  Across  the  garden, 
evidently  towards  it,  came  a  wheeled  chair 
pushed  by  a  sedate-looking  person  in  green 
livery,  and  occupied  by  a  slight  figure  covered 
with  a  gay  rug.  Theodora  gave  a  little  gasp  of 
sheer  delight. 

"It's  the  boy!"  she  exclaimed  to  herself. 
"  Now  is  my  chance  to  get  a  look  at  him. " 

Beside  the  lounge,  the  chair  came  to  a  halt, 
and  the  man,  bending  down,  lifted  the  boy  from 
the  chair.  "With  pitiful  eyes,  Theodora  noted 
the  limp  helplessness  of  all  the  lower  part  of 
his  body ;  but  she  also  saw  that  the  boyish  face 
was  bright  and  manly,  and  that  his  blue  eyes 
flashed  with  a  spirit  equal  to  Hubert's  own. 
She  watched  approvingly  the  handy  way  in 
which  the  man  settled  the  cushions.  Then  he 
turned  to  go  away.  Half  way  across  the  gar 
den,  he  was  arrested  by  a  call  from  the  lounge. 

"Hi,  Patrick:" 

"  Well,  sir  ?  " 

"  Where  's  my  book  ?  " 

"  What  book  ?  " 

"The  one  I  was  reading,  the  blue  one." 

"  I  think  you  left  it  in  the  house. " 


HER  BOOK  21 


"  But  did  n't  I  tell  you  to  bring  it  along  ? 
Go  and  get  it,  and  hurry  up  about  it."  And 
a  pillow  flew  after  Patrick's  retreating  form 
with  a  strength  and  an  accuracy  of  aim  which 
called  forth  an  ill-suppressed  giggle  from 
Theodora. 

Presently  the  man  reappeared,  book  in  hand, 
and  the  boy  hailed  him  jovially  with  an  utter 
disregard  of  his  passing  ill-humor.  Then  the 
man  went  away,  and  silence  fell.  The  boy 
below  was  absorbed  in  his  reading;  Theodora 
above  in  watching  him  and  building  up  a  de 
tailed  romance  about  him,  upon  the  slight 
foundation  of  her  present  impression. 

"I  wonder  what  his  name  is,"  she  said  to 
herself.  "  I  hope  it 's  something  nice  and 
interesting,  like  Valentine,  or  Geoffrey,  or 
something. " 

She  had  just  reached  the  point  in  her  ro 
mance  where  one  of  them,  she  was  not  quite 
sure  which,  should  rescue  the  other  from  a  run 
away  horse,  when  the  boy  suddenly  called  her 
back  to  the  present  by  throwing  his  open  book 
on  the  ground,  with  a  vigorous  yawn. 

"  Ha-um ! "  he  remarked,  and,  turning  his 
head  slightly,  he  stared  aimlessly  up  into  the 
tree  above  him. 


22  TEDDY 

Theodora,  high  up  among  the  branches,  was 
screened  from  his  view  by  the  light  leafage, 
and  the  pale  greenish  tones  of  her  cotton  gown 
helped  her  to  escape  notice.  Accordingly,  she 
bent  forward  and  peeped  through  the  leaves, 
laughing  to  herself  as  she  saw  his  eyes  turned 
upward,  quite  unconscious  of  her  scrutiny. 

Yes,  he  was  interesting,  she  told  herself. 
He  did  not  look  in  the  least  like  a  pensive  in 
valid  as  he  lay  there,  and  she  nodded  to  herself 
in  girlish  approval,  as  she  took  in  every  detail 
of  his  appearance.  Unfortunately  that  nod  cost 
her  her  hiding-place.  Without  in  the  least 
realizing  it,  she  had  leaned  too  far  forward, 
and  she  slipped  from  her  perch.  She  saved 
herself  by  catching  at  a  branch  before  her;  but 
the  sudden  jar  sent  a  ripe  apple  crashing  down 
through  the  leaves,  and  it  landed  plump  in  one 
of  the  cushions,  not  two  inches  from  the  boy's 
head. 

"Oh,  I  say!"  he  exclaimed. 

The  words  were  addressed  to  empty  space, 
merely  as  an  expression  of  surprise.  The  sur 
prise  was  increased,  as  he  saw  the  leaves  pushed 
apart,  and  Theodora's  face,  rosy  with  blushes, 
appear  in  the  opening. 

"  I  'm  so  sorry !     Did  it  hurt  you  ?  " 


HER  BOOK  23 


"Not  a  bit.  Besides,  I  was  just  getting 
hungry. " 

As  a  proof  of  his  statement,  his  teeth  met  in 
the  apple. 

"Don't  you  want  another?"  Theodora  in 
quired  generously. 

"Thank  you;  not  in  that  same  way.  You 
might  aim  better,  next  time." 

"  Honestly,  I  did  n't  mean  to  do  it.  I  slipped 
and  jiggled  it  down.  Wait  a  minute,  and  I  '11 
throw  down  some  more,  better  ones." 

She  scrambled  about  in  the  branches,  tossing 
down  the  bright  apples  till  they  lay  thick  on 
the  ground  about  the  lounge.  The  boy  watched 
her,  half  amused,  half  envious  as  he  saw  her 
lithe,  agile  motions. 

"  You  '11  have  to  come  down  and  pick  them 
up  now,"  he  said  composedly,  when  the  shower 
had  ceased.  "I  can't  reach  them,  you  see." 

"  Oh ! "     Theodora  gave   a   little    groan   of 
annoyance.     "  How  stupid  I  am ! " 

"I  don't  see  why.  But  come  along  down  and 
talk  to  a  fellow  for  a  while. " 

Glimpses  of  a  rosy  face,  a  pale  green  gown 
and  a  pair  of  tan-colored  shoes  were  beginning 
to  whet  his  curiosity.  He  wanted  to  see  what 
the  stranger  was  like,  at  shorter  range. 


24  TEDDY 

With  a  rustle  and  a  slide  and  a  bump,  Theo 
dora  dropped  lightly  at  his  side.  She  caught 
the  placket  of  her  skirt,  on  the  way;  but  the 
sound  of  rending  garments  was  too  common  an 
occurrence  in  her  career  to  call  for  more  than 
a  passing  attention.  Strange  to  say,  it  had 
been  much  easier  to  talk  when  ,shc  had  been 
half-hidden  in  the  apple-tree.  A  sudden  shy 
ness  came  upon  them  both,  as  they  looked  in  each 
other's  eyes.  There  was  an  interval  of  silence. 
Then  Theodora  dropped  down  on  the  turf  by  the 
lounge,  and  held  up  a  handful  of  apples. 

"  Take  one  of  these.  They  're  ever  so  much 
better  than  the  first  one. " 

"  This  is  good  enough,  thank  you. "  He  took 
another  from  her  outstretched  hand,  however. 
"Do  you  usually  inhabit  trees  like  this?  I 
didn't  hear  you  come." 

"I  've  been  there  all  the  morning,"  Theodora 
answered,  while  she  told  herself  that  his  bright 
blue  eyes  were  almost  as  fine  as  Hubert's  brown 
ones.  "That  tree  is  my  city  of  refuge.  The 
others  call  it  'Teddy's  tree.'" 

"  And  you  are  —  "  he  hesitated. 

She  laughed,  while  she  chose  one  of  the 
apples  that  lay  beside  her,  and  plunged  her 
strong  young  teeth  into  it. 


HER   BOOK  25 


"Yes,  I  'm  Teddy,"  she  said,  with  her  mouth 
somewhat  too  full  for  elegance.  "  My  real  name 
is  Theodora,"  she  added,  speaking  rather  more 
distinctly. 

"I  think  I  like  the  other  best,"  the  boy  re 
plied,  laughing  in  his  turn. 

"I  don't.  Teddy  is  like  a  boy;  but  Theodora 
is  stately  and  dignified.  I  want  to  be  called 
Theodora;  but  in  a  family  like  ours,  there  are 
bound  to  be  nicknames." 

"You  are  n't  the  only  one,  then  ?  " 

"Mercy,  no!     There  are  five  of  us." 

"  How  jolly  it  must  be  !  I  'm  the  only  one. " 
The  boy's  tone  was  a  bit  wishful.  "Are  they 
all  like  you  ?  " 

"I  hope  not."  Theodora  's  laugh  rang  out  a 
second  time,  hearty  and  infectious.  "  There  are 
two  good  ones,  and  two  bad  ones,  and  a  baby. " 

"  Which  are  you  ?  "  the  boy  asked  mischiev 
ously. 

"  What  a  question  !  I  'm  bad,  of  course,  that 
is,  in  comparison  with  Hope.  She  's  the  old 
est,  and  we  get  worse  as  we  go  down  the  line. 
I  shudder  to  think  what  the  baby  may  develop 
into." 

The  boy  nestled  down  contentedly  among  his 
cushions  and  watched  her  with  merry  eyes. 


26  TEDDY 

"Go  on  and  tell  about  them,"  he  urged. 
"  It 's  such  fun  to  hear  about  a  large  family. " 

Theodora's  quick  eye  saw  that  one  of  the 
cushions  was  slipping  to  one  side.  She  re 
placed  it  with  a  deftness  of  touch  natural  to 
her,  yet  seemingly  incongruous  with  her  harum- 
scarum  ways.  Then  she  settled  herself  with 
her  back  against  a  tree,  facing  her  new  friend. 

"Hope  is  past  seventeen  and  an  angel,"  she 
said ;  "  one  of  the  good,  quiet  kind  with  yellow 
hair  and  not  any  temper.  She  's  had  all  the 
care  of  us,  since  my  mother  died.  Then  there  's 
Hubert,  my  twin  brother.  He  's  my  boy,  and  a 
splendid  one.  You  '11  like  Hu.  Phebe  is  ten, 
and  a  terror.  Nobody  ever  knows  what  she  '11 
do  or  say  next.  We  call  her  Babe,  but  Allyn 
is  the  real  baby.  He  's  cunning  and  funny, 
except  when  Babe  teases  him,  and  then  he 
rages  like  a  little  monster.  That 's  all  there 
are  of  us." 

"  And  you  live  just  over  the  fence  ?  " 

"Yes,  we've  lived  there  always,  grown  up 
with  the  place.  People  used  to  call  it  Me  A  lis 
ter's  Folly;  but  they  're  more  respectful  now." 

"McAlister?" 

"  Yes.  I  'm  Dr.  McAlister's  daughter.  Did  n't 
you  know  it  ?  " 


HER   BOOK  27 


"  How  should  I  ?  Remember,  you  came  down 
out  of  a  tree. " 

They  both  laughed. 

"That's  just  like  me,"  Theodora  returned. 
"  I  never  do  the  thing  I  ought.  Hu  was  coming 
over  here  in  a  few  days ;  but  Hope  said  I  must 
wait  to  see  what  papa  said. " 

"What  for?" 

"  Because  you  're  a  boy.  She  said  girls  don't 
go  to  see  boys.  I  told  her  I  would  wait,  and 
here  I  am.  I  couldn't  help  it;  but  Hope  will 
be  horrified.  She  never  went  to  see  a  boy  in 
her  life ;  but  then,  she  's  used  to  being  horri 
fied  at  me."  Theodora  appeared  to  be  argu 
ing  out  the  situation,  much  to  her  own  frank 
amusement. 

"But  don't  you  see  it's  different  in  this 
case  ?  "  the  boy  suggested.  "  I  'm  only  about 
half  a  boy,  just  now.  Besides,  Miss  Teddy,  if 
you  '11  only  come  over  again,  I  promise  to 
make  up  for  it,  as  soon  as  I  'm  able  to  go  to 
see  you." 

Theodora's  face  brightened. 

"  Do  you  honestly  want  me  to  come  again  ?  " 

"Of  course.  Else  I  shouldn't  ask  you. 
Come  over  the  fence  again.  I  shall  be  up  here, 
'most  every  pleasant  morning,  and  everybody 


28  TEDDY 

else  is  busy,  fixing  up  the  house.  Come  to 
morrow,"  he  urged. 

"I  will,  if  I  can.     Sometimes  I  'm  busy." 

"By  the  way,"  the  boy  added  abruptly; 
"maybe  I  ought  to  tell  you  my  name.  Prob 
ably  you  know  it,  though." 

"No."  Theodora  looked  up  expectantly. 
She  had  an  appetite  for  high-sounding  names, 
and  she  had  decided  that  Valentine  Mortimer 
would  just  suit  the  present  instance. 

"Well,  I'm  Will  Farrington;  but  everybody 
calls  me  Billy." 

"Oh."  Then  Theodora  unexpectedly  began 
to  laugh.  "We  ought  to  be  good  friends,"  she 
said;  "for  our  names  are  about  equally  impos 
ing.  Billy  and  Teddy !  Could  anything  be 
more  prosaic  ?  Good-by, "  she  added,  as  she 
rose.  "Truly,  I  must  go  home  now." 

Billy  held  out  his  hand.  It  looked  rather 
white  and  thin,  as  Theodora's  brown,  strong 
fingers  closed  over  it. 

"Good-by,  "he  said  reluctantly.  "Do  come 
again  whenever  you  can.  Remember  there  arc 
five  of  you  and  only  one  of  me,  and  be  as  neigh 
borly  as  you  can." 

Theodora  mounted  the  fence.  At  the  top, 
she  paused  and  looked  back. 


HER  BOOK  29 


"I  will  come,"  she  said.  "I'll  get  round 
Hope  in  some  way  or  other.  Good-by  till  to 
morrow."  She  nodded  brightly,  and  jumped 
down  out  of  sight,  on  the  other  side  of  the 
fence. 


30  TEDDY 


CHAPTER  THREE 

TT  was  the  first  of  September,  and  the  sun- 
shine  lay  yellow  on  the  fields.  Phebe 
McAlister  and  her  chief  friend  and  crony,  Isa 
bel  St.  John,  sat  side  by  side  on  a  rough  board 
fence,  not  far  from  the  McAlister  grounds, 
feasting  upon  turnips.  The  turnips  were  un 
ripe  and  raw,  and  nothing  but  an  innate  spirit 
of  perversity  could  have  induced  the  girls  to 
eat  them.  Moreover,  each  had  an  abundant 
supply  of  exactly  similar  vegetables  in  her  own 
home  garden,  yet  they  had  wandered  away,  to 
prey  upon  the  turnip  patch  of  Mr.  Elnathan 
Rogers. 

"  Good,  are  n't  they  ?  "  Phebe  asked,  as  the 
corky,  hard  root  cracked  under  her  jaws. 

"Fine."  Isabel  rolled  her  morsel  under  her 
tongue;  then,  when  Phebe's  attention  was  dis 
tracted,  she  furtively  threw  it  down  back  of  the 
fence.  "  I  believe  I  like  'em  better  this  way 
than  I  do  cooked."  This  addition  was  strictly 
true,  for  Isabel  never  touched  turnips  at  home. 


HER   BOOK  31 


"  I  want  another. "  Phebe  jumped  down  and 
helped  herself  to  two  more  turnips,  carefully 
choosing  the  largest  and  best,  and  ruthlessly 
sacrificing  a  half-dozen  more  in  the  process. 
"Here,  Isabel,  take  your  pick." 

Isabel  held  out  her  hand,  hesitated,  then,  with 
a  radiant  smile  of  generosity,  ostentatiously 
helped  herself  to  the  smaller.  But  Phebe  held 
firmly  to  its  bunch  of  green  leaves. 

"  No,  take  the  other,  Isabel, "  she  urged. 

"I  'd  rather  leave  it  for  you." 

"  But  I  want  you  to  have  it. " 

"  And  I  want  you  to  take  it. " 

"  I  've  got  ever  so  many  more  at  home. " 

"So'vel." 

Reluctantly  Phebe  yielded  her  hold,  and  Isa 
bel  took  the  smaller  one  and  rubbed  the  earth 
away,  before  biting  it. 

"It 's  not  fair  for  me  to  take  it,  Phebe,"  she 
observed ;  "  when  you  were  the  one  to  get  it. " 

Phebe  giggled. 

"Just  s'pose  Mr.  Rogers  should  catch  us 
here,  Isabel  St.  John !  What  would  you  do  ?  " 

"I  'd  run,"  Isabel  returned  tersely. 

"I  wouldn't;  I'd  tell  him." 

Isabel  stared  at  her  friend  in  admiration. 

"Tell  him  what?" 


32  TEDDY 

"Oh —  things,"  Phebe  answered,  with  sud 
den  vagueness.  "My  papa  and  mamma  are 
coming  home  this  afternoon." 

"Your  stepmother,"  Isabel  corrected. 

"  Well,  what 's  the  difference  ?  " 

"Lots." 

"  What  ?  " 

"Oh,  stepmothers  are  always  mean  to  you 
and  abuse  you." 

"  How  do  you  know  ?    You  have  n't  got  any. " 

"No;  but  I  knew  a  girl  that  had."  Isabel 
took  advantage  of  Phebe's  interest  in  the  sub 
ject,  to  slip  the  half-eaten  turnip  into  her 
pocket. 

"  What  happened  ?  "  Phebe  demanded. 

"Oh,  everything.  The  stepmother  used  to 
take  tucks  in  her  dresses,  and  whip  her,  and 
send  her  to  bed,  and  even  when  there  was  com 
pany.  And  her  own  mother  used  to  stand  by 
the  bed  and  say,  — 

'  How  is  my  baby  and  how  is  my  fawn  ? 
Once  more  •will  I  come,  and  then  vanish  at  dawn.' " 

Phebe  turned  around  sharply. 

"  What  a  fib !  That 's  in  a  book  of  fairy 
stories,  and  you  said  you  knew  the  girl,  Isabel 
St.  John." 


HER   BOOK  33 


"  So  I  did.  Her  name  was  Eugenia  Martha 
Smith." 

But  Phebe  refused  to  be  convinced. 

"I  don't  believe  one  word  of  it,  Isabel;  and 
you  need  n't  feel  so  smart,  even  if  you  do  have 
a  mother  of  your  own.  I  used  to  have ;  and  I 
know  my  stepmother  will  be  nicer  than  your 
mother. " 

"  How  do  you  know  ?  " 

"  She  's  prettier  and  she  's  younger.  She 
gave  me  lots  and  lots  of  peaches,  too,  and  your 
mother  would  n't  let  us  have  a  single  one,  so 
there  now." 

"Do  you  know  the  reason  why  ?  "  Isabel  de 
manded,  in  hot  indignation. 

"No,  I  don't,  and  I  don't  believe  she  does," 
Phebe  answered  recklessly. 

"  She  said,  after  you  'd  gone,  that  she  'd  have 
been  willing  to  let  you  have  one,  but  you  were 
so  deceitful,  you  'd  have  taken  a  dozen,  as  soon 
as  her  back  was  turned.  Now  what  do  you 
think  ? " 

Even  between  the  friends,  quarrels  had  been 
known  to  occur  before  now,  and  one  seemed 
imminent.  An  unexpected  diversion  inter 
vened. 

"Little  girls,"  a  solemn  voice  sounded  in 
3 


34  TEDDY 

their  ears ;  "  do  you  know  you  arc  taking  tur 
nips  that  do  not  belong  to  you  ?  " 

It  was  Mr.  Elnathan  Rogers.  Isabel  quaked, 
but  Phebe  faced  him  boldly. 

"Yes,  sir." 

"  But  it  is  a  sin  to  steal  —  ' 

"A  pin."  Phebe  unexpectedly  capped  his 
sentence  for  him.  "  These  are  n't  worth  a  pin, 
anyway,  and  I  don't  see  the  harm  of  hooking 
two  or  three." 

"But  they  are  not  your  own,"  Mr.  Rogers 
reiterated.  He  was  more  accustomed  to  the 
phraseology  of  the  prayer-meeting  than  of  the 
public  school. 

"Ours  are  n't  ripe  yet,"  she  answered,  as  she 
scrambled  down  from  the  fence.  "  When  they 
are,  I  '11  bring  some  of  them  over,  if  you  want 
them.  Yours  aren't  very  good  ones,  either." 

Isabel  also  descended  from  the  fence.  As 
she  did  so,  her  skirt  clung  for  a  moment,  and 
the  turnip  rolled  out  from  her  pocket.  Mr. 
Rogers  eyed  her  sternly. 

"  Worse  and  worse, "  he  said.  "  I  would  rather 
feel  that  you  ate  them  here,  where  temptation 
lurks,  than  that  you  carried  them  away  to  de 
vour  at  your  ease.  I  shall  surely  have  to  speak 
to  your  parents,  little  girls.  Who  are  you  ?  " 


HER  BOOK  35 


Isabel  looked  to  Phebe  for  support;  but 
Phebe  was  far  down  the  road,  running  to  meet 
her  brother,  who  had  just  come  in  sight, 
with  Mulvaney,  the  old  Irish  setter,  at  his 
heels. 

"I  —  I'm  Isabel  St.  John,"  she  confessed. 

"Not  the  minister's  girl  ?  " 

She  nodded. 

"  Well,  I  swan !  "  And  Mr.  Rogers  picked  up 
his  hoe,  and  fell  to  pondering  upon  the  problem 
of  infant  depravity,  while  Isabel  turned  and 
scuttled  after  her  friend. 

"  What  do  you  want,  Hu  ?  "  Phebe  was 
calling. 

"  Hope  says  it 's  time  for  you  to  come  home 
now,  and  get  dressed." 

"  Bother !  I  don't  want  to.  Isabel  and  I  are 
having  fun. " 

Hubert  took  her  hand  and  turned  it  palm 
upward. 

"It  must  be  a  queer  kind  of  fun,  from  the 
color  of  you,"  he  observed.  "But  come,  Babe, 
Hope  is  waiting. " 

Isabel  had  joined  them  and  fallen  into  step 
at  their  side. 

"  What  a  queer  name  Hope  is ! "  she  said 
critically,  for  she  wished  to  convince  Phebe 


36  TEDDY 

that  she  and  all  her  family  were  under  the  ban 
of  her  lasting  displeasure. 

"  It  is  only  short  for  Hopestill,  and  it  is  n't 
any  queerer  name  than  Isabel. " 

"Hopestill!  That 's  worse.  Where  did  she 
ever  get  such  a  name  ?  " 

But  Hubert  interposed. 

"It  was  mamma's  name,  Isabel;  so  we  all 
like  it.  Let 's  not  talk  about  it  any  more." 

Towards  noon  of  that  day,  Theodora,  who 
had  taken  refuge  in  her  tree,  heard  Hope's 
voice  calling  her.  Reluctantly  she  scrambled 
down  from  her  perch  and  presented  herself. 

"There  's  so  much  to  be  done,  Teddy,"  Hope 
said  ;  "  would  you  mind  dusting  the  parlor  ?  " 

Theodora  hated  dusting.  Her  idea  of  that 
solemn  household  rite  was  to  stand  in  the  mid 
dle  of  the  room  and  flap  a  feather  duster  in  al] 
directions.  To-day,  however,  she  took  the  cloth 
which  Hope  offered,  without  pausing  to  argue 
over  the  need  for  its  use. 

Once  in  the  parlor,  she  moved  slowly  around 
the  room,  diligently  wiping  the  dust  from  ex 
posed  surfaces,  without  taking  the  trouble  to 
move  so  much  as  a  vase.  At  the  piano,  she 
paused  and  looked  up  at  her  mother's  picture 
which  hung;  there  above  it.  It  was  a  life-size 


HER  BOOK  37 


crayon  portrait,  copied  from  a  photograph  that 
had  been  taken  only  a  few  weeks  before  Mrs. 
McAlister's  death,  and  the  sweet  pictured  face 
and  the  simple,  every-day  gown  were  the  face 
and  gown  which  Theodora  remembered  so  well. 
The  girl  stood  leaning  on  the  piano,  quite  for 
getful  of  the  dusting,  as  she  stared  up  into  the 
loving  eyes  above  her,  and,  while  she  looked, 
two  great  tears  came  into  her  eyes,  and  two 
more,  and  more  yet.  Then  Theodora  suddenly 
bowed  her  head  on  her  folded  arms,  and  sobbed 
with  the  intensity  of  such  natures  as  hers. 

"Oh,  Mamma  McAlister,"  she  cried;  "come 
back  to  us !  We  do  want  you,  and  we  don't 
want  her.  Your  Teddy  is  so  lonely.  I  won't 
have  that  woman  here  in  your  place.  I  won't ! 
I  won't!" 

She  raised  her  head  again  to  look  at  the 
smiling  lips  and  the  tender  eyes.  Then  ab 
ruptly  she  dragged  forward  a  chair,  climbed  to 
the  top  of  the  piano  and  took  down  the  portrait 
which  had  hung  there  since  the  day  of  its  first 
entering  the  house. 

It  was  late,  that  afternoon,  when  the  car 
riage  stopped  before  the  house,  and  Dr.  McAlis 
ter,  with  his  bride  on  his  arm,  came  up  the 
walk.  The  children  were  waiting  to  greet 


38  TEDDY 

them,  Phebe  perched  on  the  fence,  Hope  on  the 
steps  with  Allyn  clinging  to  her  hand,  and  the 
twins  in  the  doorway,  while  old  Susan  stood  in 
the  hall,  ready  to  welcome  her  new  mistress. 

There  was  the  little  flurry  of  meeting,  the 
swift  buzz  of  talk.  Then  Hope  led  the  way 
into  the  great,  airy  parlor  which  she  had  not 
entered  before,  that  day. 

On  the  threshold,  she  paused,  aghast.  Di 
rectly  facing  her  stood  a  large  easel  which  usu 
ally  held  a  fine  engraving  of  the  Dolorosa. 
To-day,  however,  the  Dolorosa  was  displaced. 
It  stood  on  the  floor  by  the  piano,  and  in  its 
place  was  the  portrait  of  Hope's  own  mother, 
looking  up  to  greet  the  woman  who  had  come  to 
take  her  place  in  the  home.  Across  the  corner 
of  the  frame  lay  a  pile  of  white  bride  roses,  tied 
with  a  heavy  purple  ribbon. 

"Don't  mind  it,  Jack,"  Mrs.  McAlister  said 
to  her  husband,  as  soon  as  they  were  alone  to 
gether.  "I  like  the  child's  spirit.  Leave  it 
to  me,  please.  I  think  I  can  make  friends  with 
her  before  long. " 

Theodora  was  standing  before  the  mirror, 
that  night,  brush  in  hand,  while  the  wavy 
masses  of  her  hair  fell  about  her  like  a  heavy 
cape.  Her  eyes  looked  dull,  and  the  corners 


HER  BOOK  39 


of  her  mouth  drooped  dejectedly.  She  started 
suddenly  when  an  unexpected  knock  came  at 
her  door. 

"Come,"  she  responded. 

The  door  swung  open,  and  Mrs.  McAlister 
stood  on  the  threshold.  In  her  trailing  blue 
wrapper  with  its  little  lace  ruffles  at  the  throat 
and  wrists,  she  looked  younger  than  she  had 
done  in  her  travelling  gown,  and  the  pure,  deep 
color  was  not  one  bit  deeper  and  purer  than  the 
color  of  the  eyes  above  it. 

"  May  I  come  in  to  say  good-night  ? "  she 
asked,  pausing  in  the  doorway,  for  Theodora's 
face  was  slightly  forbidding. 

"Of  course."  The  girl  drew  forward  a  low 
willow  chair. 

As  she  passed,  Mrs.  McAlister  laid  a  caress 
ing  hand  on  the  brown  hair. 

"  What  a  mass  of  it  you  have ! "  she  said, 
seating  herself  and  looking  up  at  her  step 
daughter  who  stood  before  her,  not  knowing 
how  to  meet  this  unexpected  invasion. 

The  remark  seemed  to  call  for  no  reply,  and 
Theodora  took  up  her  brush  again. 

"Did  you  have  a  pleasant  journey?"  she 
asked,  after  a  pause. 

"  Very ;  but  the  home-coming  Avas  pleasantest 


40  TEDDY 

of  all.  It  was  very  sweet  of  you  all  to  be  at 
the  door  to  welcome  me." 

"That  was  Hope's  doing,"  Theodora  said 
bluntly.  "  She  told  us  we  ought  to  be  there 
when  you  came." 

"It  was  good,  whoever  thought  of  it,"  Mrs. 
McAlister  answered  gently.  "  Remember  that 
it  is  years  since  I  've  known  what  it  meant  to 
come  home." 

Theodora  tossed  aside  her  hair  and  turned  to 
face  her. 

"  How  do  you  mean  ?  "  she  asked  curiously. 

"  My  father  and  mother  died  when  I  was  in 
college,"  her  stepmother  replied.  "There  were 
only  two  of  us  left,  my  little  brother  and  I,  and 
we  never  had  a  home,  a  real  one,  after  that.  I 
taught,  and  he  was  sent  away  to  school. " 

"  Where  is  he  now  ?  " 

"In  Montana,  a  civil  engineer.  I  find  it 
hard  to  realize  that  my  little  brother  Archie  is 
twenty-two,  and  a  grown  man." 

There  was  another  pause.  Then  Mrs.  Mc 
Alister  suddenly  drew  a  low  footstool  to  her 
side. 

"Theodora,  child,"  she  said;  "sit  down  here 
and  let  me  talk  to  you.  You  seem  so  far  off, 
standing  there.  Remember,  I  'in  a  stranger  to 


HER  BOOK  41 


you  all,  and  I  want  somebody  to  cuddle  me  a 
little,  this  first  night." 

She  had  chanced  to  strike  the  right  chord. 
Theodora  never  failed  to  respond  to  an  appeal 
to  her  sympathy  and  care.  All  enveloped  in 
her  loosened  hair,  she  dropped  down  at  her 
stepmother's  side. 

"You  aren't  homesick,  I  hope." 

"No;  I  couldn't  be,  with  such  a  welcome 
home.  But  papa  is  down  in  the  office,  and  I 
needed  somebody  to  talk  to.  I  thought  you  'd 
understand,  dear.  And  then  there  were  things 
I  wanted  to  say  to  you." 

"What?"  Theodora  asked  suspiciously. 

Mrs.  McAlister  rested  her  hand  on  the  girl's 
shoulder. 

"  About  the  flowers,  for  one  thing.  I  know 
so  well  how  you  felt,  Theodora,  when  you  put 
them  there. " 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  "  Theodora  faced  her 
sharply. 

"  My  own  mother  died  before  I  was  seventeen, 
a  year  before  my  father  did,  and  I  used  to  wake 
up  in  the  night  and  cry,  because  I  was  so  afraid 
he  would  marry  again. " 

"But  you  married  papa,"  Theodora  said 
slowly. 


42  TEDDY 

"I  know  I  did.  Since  then,  Theodora,  I 
have  come  to  see  the  other  side  of  it  all.  But 
I  remember  the  way  I  used  to  feel  about  it ;  and 
I  know  that  you  think  I  am  an  interloper  here. 
Hope  does  n't  mind  it  so  much,  nor  Hubert ;  it 
is  hardest  of  all  for  you."  She  paused  and 
stroked  the  brown  hair  again. 

Theodora  sat  silent,  her  eyes  fixed  on  the 
floor. 

"I  sha'n't  mean  to  come  between  you  and 
your  father,  Theodora,"  Mrs.  McAlister  went 
on ;  "  and  I  shall  never  expect  to  take  your  own 
mother's  place.  And  yet,  in  time  I  hope  you 
can  care  for  me  a  little,  too. " 

Suddenly  the  girl  turned  and  laid  her  lithe 
young  arm  across  her  stepmother's  knee. 

"I  think  I  can  —  in  time,"  she  said.  "It 
takes  me  a  good  while  to  get  used  to  new 
things,  some  new  things,  that  is,  and  I  didn't 
want  somebody  to  come  here  and  drive  my  own 
mother  farther  off.  She  was  different  from  every 
body  else,  somehow.  But  your  mother  died, 
and  you  '11  understand  about  it. "  Her  tone  was 
quiet  and  dispassionate,  yet,  underneath,  it 
rang  true,  and  Mrs.  McAlister  was  satisfied. 

"Thank  you,  Teddy,"  she  said  gently.  "Or 
would  you  rather  I  called  you  Theodora  ?  " 


HER  BOOK  43 


"  Theodora,  please, "  the  girl  answered,  flush 
ing  a  little.  "  Teddy  was  my  baby  name ;  but 
I  'm  not  a  baby  any  longer.  The  others  have 
called  me  Teddy  so  long  that  I  can't  break 
them  of  the  habit;  but  I  don't  like  the  name." 

"It  suits  you,  though,"  Mrs.  McAlister  said, 
smiling  as  her  eyes  rested  on  the  intent  young 
face  beside  her.  "  But  I  '11  try  to  remember. 
And  now  I  wish  you  'd  tell  me  a  little  about 
the  younger  ones,  Phebe  and  Allyn.  Your 
father  told  me  that  Hope  was  the  housekeeper, 
but  that,  in  some  ways,  you  were  the  real 
mother  of  them  all." 

Theodora's  face  lighted,  and  she  laughed. 

"  Did  he  truly  say  that  ?  Hope  has  the  real 
care  of  them,  and  she  never  fights  with  them, 
as  I  do." 

There  was  an  amusing,  off-hand  directness 
in  Theodora's  tone  which  pleased  her  step 
mother.  Already  she  felt  more  at  home  and 
on  cordial  terms  with  the  outspoken  girl  than 
with  the  gentle,  courteous  Hope ;  yet  she  real 
ized  that  her  own  course  was  by  no  means  open 
before  her,  that  it  would  be  long  before  Theo 
dora  would  accept  her  sway  in  the  home.  It 
would  be  necessary  to  proceed  slowly,  but 
firmly.  Little  Allyn  and  fractious  Phebe  would 


44  TEDDY 

be  less  difficult  for  her  to  manage  than  their 
older  sister.  She  lingered  for  half  an  hour 
longer,  talking  with  Theodora  until  she  heard 
Dr.  McAlister's  step  upon  the  stairs;  and  when 
at  last  she  left  the  room,  Theodora's  good-night 
sounded  quite  as  cordial  as  her  own. 


HER  BOOK  45 


CHAPTER  FOUR 

"  T  WISH  I  could  have  all  my  wishes  granted," 

-L     Theodora  said. 

She  was  sitting  in  her  favorite  position  on 
the  grass  beside  Billy's  lounge,  with  her  elbows 
on  her  knees  and  her  chin  in  her  clasped  hands. 
Billy,  propped  up  among  his  cushions,  smiled 
back  at  her  benignly. 

"  You  'd  be  most  awfully  disagreeable  to  live 
with,"  he  returned. 

"  Thank  you  for  the  compliment.  I  'd  like 
to  run  the  risk,  though." 

"Let  me  move  out  of  town  first,"  the  boy 
replied  teasingly.  "  But  you  need  n't  be  greedy ; 
I'd  be  satisfied  to  have  one  wish." 

"  That 's  because  you  don't  need  so  many 
things  as  I  do." 

"  It 's  because  I  have  one  thing  I  want  so 
much  more  than  I  do  the  others,"  he  retorted. 

She  looked  up  at  him  with  a  sudden  flash  of 
tenderness  in  her  eyes. 

"I  know,"  she  said  gently;  "but  it  won't  be 
long." 


46  TEDDY 

"  Months,  though.  How  would  you  like  it  to 
take  a  year  out  of  your  life  ?  " 

Theodora's  brows  contracted. 

"Don't  you  suppose  I  ever  think  ahout  it, 
Billy  Farrington  ?  I  should  be  frantic,  if  I 
were  in  your  place,  and  I  don't  see  how  you 
ever  stand  it.  It  makes  my  wishes  seem  so 
small,  in  comparison.  I  'd  rather  be  poorer 
than  Job's  turkey  than  spend  even  one  month 
on  my  back.  Does  it  hurt ;  or  is  it  just  that  you 
can't  do  things  ?  Either  one  is  bad  enough. " 

"  It  hurts  sometimes." 

"Now?" 

He  nodded. 

"1  thought  you  looked  tired,  as  if  something 
bothered  you,"  Theodora  said  penitently;  "and 
here  I  've  stayed  talking  to  you,  when  you  'd 
rather  have  been  by  yourself." 

"  Honestly,  no.  You  make  me  forget  things. " 
He  held  out  his  hand  in  protest,  as  she  started 
to  rise.  "Sit  down  again. " 

She  obeyed  him ;  but  she  fell  silent,  as  she 
sat  looking  up  at  him.  He  had  more  color  than 
usual,  she  noticed ;  but  there  were  fine  lines 
between  his  brows,  and  his  red-gold  hair  was 
pushed  back  from  his  face,  as  if  its  weight  irri 
tated  him. 


HER   BOOK  47 


"  But  what  arc  the  wishes  ? "  he  asked,  res 
tive  under  her  scrutiny,  and  seeking  to  divert 
her. 

"Oh,  I  have  dozens  and  dozens;  but  there 
are  three  great  big  ones  which  increase  in 
greatness  as  they  go  on." 

"  What  are  they  ? "  he  asked  curiously. 
"  You  '11  get  them,  if  you  wait  long  enough. 
People  always  do." 

"I  don't  believe  it.  These  are  all  impos 
sible,  and  I  never  expect  to  get  them;  but  I 
want  them,  all  the  same.  I  want  —  "  She  hesi 
tated,  laughing  and  blushing  a  little.  "You  '11 
make  fun  of  me. " 

"No,  I  won't.     Go  on  and  tell." 

"  I  want  a  bicycle  first.  Then  I  want  to  go 
to  college."  She  hesitated  again  and  stuck 
fast. 

"And  then?" 

She  raised  her  head  and  spoke  rapidly. 

"Don't  laugh;  but  I  want  some  day  to  be  an 
author  and  write  books. " 

She  started  abruptly,  for  a  white  hand  sud 
denly  rested  on  her  shoulder. 

"Bravo,  Miss  Teddy!  — for  it  is  Miss  Teddy; 
isn  't  it  ?  Will  has  told  me  about  you  and  I  'm 
glad  to  get  a  glimpse  of  you  at  last.  Your 


48  TEDD7 

wishes  are  good  ones,  all  of  them,  and  I  hope 
you  will  get  them,  and  get  them  soon." 

As  she  spoke,  Mrs.  Farrington  moved  across 
and  seated  herself  on  the  edge  of  the  lounge. 

"  How  is  the  pain,  Will  ?  "  she  asked,  bend 
ing  over  to  settle  him  more  comfortably.  "I 
was  sorry  to  leave  you  so  long;  but  you  were  in 
good  hands.  Miss  Teddy,  this  boy  of  mine  says 
that  you  have  been  very  good  to  him,  since  we 
came  here." 

Theodora  flushed  a  little.  It  was  the  first 
time  she  had  been  face  to  face  with  Mrs.  Far 
rington,  and  she  found  the  slender  figure  in  its 
unrelieved  black  gown  rather  awe-inspiring. 
She  began  to  wish  that  she  had  taken  Hope's 
advice  and  remained  upon  her  own  side  of  the 
fence.  During  the  past  ten  days,  her  neigh 
borly  calls  had  been  frequent;  but  she  had 
always  before  now  succeeded  in  making  her 
escape  before  any  one  else  appeared.  Hubert, 
in  the  meantime,  had  dutifully  called  on  his 
new  neighbor;  but  he  had  called  decorously  and 
by  way  of  the  front  gate,  at  a  time  when  Billy 
was  out  with  his  mother  for  their  daily  drive, 
so  Mrs.  Farrington  had  caught  no  glimpse  of 
their  young  neighbors  who  had  it  in  their  power 
to  make  such  a  difference  in  her  son's  life. 


HER  BOOK  49 


She  had  been  amused  and  interested  in  Billy's 
account  of  Theodora's  erratic  calls,  and  she 
had  felt  an  instant  liking  for  the  bright-faced, 
straightforward  young  girl  who  was  as  free 
from  self-consciousness  as  Billy  himself. 

"  When  is  your  father  coming  back  ?  "  she 
asked,  after  a  pause,  during  which  she  became 
conscious  of  Theodora's  searching  scrutiny. 

"Day  after  to-morrow,  I  think.  We  had  a 
letter  from  him,  this  morning." 

"I  am  so  glad,"  Mrs.  Farringtori  said.  "I 
want  him  to  see  Will  as  soon  as  he  comes. 
Dr.  Parker  spoke  so  highly  of  him  that  I  feel 
it  is  everything  for  us  to  be  so  near  him  as  we 
are." 

Theodora's  color  came.  She  was  intensely 
loyal  to  her  father,  and  praise  of  him  was  sweet 
to  her  ears. 

"People  say  that  papa  is  a  good  doctor,"  she 
replied  frankly.  "  I  hope  he  '11  be  able  to  help 
Billy.  Anyway,  we  're  all  so  glad  to  have 
somebody  living  here  again.  It 's  ages  since 
the  house  has  been  occupied." 

Mrs.  Farrington  smiled. 

"I  should  judge  so  from  the  general  air  of 
mustiness  I  find.  I  rejoice  in  all  this  bright, 
warm  weather,  so  Will  can  live  out  of  doors. 
4 


50  TEDDY 

The  house  feels  fairly  clammy,  and  I  don't  like 
to  have  him  in  it,  more  than  I  can  help.  I 
hope  you  are  going  to  be  very  neighborly,  all  of 
you,  this  coming  winter." 

Theodora  laughed. 

"  All  five  of  us  ?  Remember,  you  are  n't  used 
to  such  a  horde,  and  we  may  overrun  you  en 
tirely.  You  'd  better  arrange  to  take  us  on  the 
instalment  plan." 

"  We  're  not  timid, "  Billy  asserted.  "  Really, 
I  think  we  can  stand  it,  Miss  Teddy. " 

Theodora  shook  her  head. 

"You've  not  seen  Babe  yet,  and  you  little 
realize  what  she  is.  In  fact,  you  've  hardly 
seen  any  of  us.  I  want  you  to  know  Hope. 
You'll  adore  her;  boys  always  do." 

"In  the  meantime,"  Mrs.  Farrington  inter 
posed  ;  "  I  want  to  know  something  about  —  " 
she  paused  for  the  right  word,  —  "  about  your 
new  mother.  Some  one  told  me  she  was  at 
Vassar.  That  is  my  college,  you  know.  What 
was  her  maiden  name  ?  " 

"Holden.     Elizabeth  Holdcn." 

"  Bess  Holden !  "  Mrs.  Farrington  started 
up  excitedly.  "I  wonder  if  it  can  be  Bess. 
What  does  she  look  like  ?  " 

"  I  've  only  seen  her  once. " 


HER  BOOK  51 


"Was  she  tall  and  dark,  with  great  blue 
eyes  ? " 

"Yes,  I  think  so,  and  I  remember  that  her 
eyebrows  weren't  just  alike;  one  was  bent 
more  than  the  other." 

"It  must  be  Bess."  Mrs.  Farrington  rose 
and  moved  to  and  fro  across  the  lawn.  Theo 
dora  watched  her  admiringly,  noticing  her  firm, 
free  step  and  the  faultless  lines  of  her  tailor- 
made  gown.  She  felt  suddenly  young  and 
crude  and  rather  shabby.  Then  Mrs.  Farring 
ton  paused  beside  her.  "If  it  is  Bess  Holden, 
Miss  Teddy,  your  father  is  a  happy  man,  and  I 
am  a  happy  woman  to  have  stumbled  into  this 
neighborhood.  She  was  the  baby  of  our  class, 
and  one  of  the  finest  girls  in  it.  When  she 
comes,  ask  her  —  No,  don't  ask  her  anything. 
It  is  eighteen  years  since  we  met,  and  I  want 
to  see  if  she  '11  remember  me.  Don't  tell  her 
anything  about  me,  please." 

A  week  later,  the  McAlisters  were  sitting 
under  one  of  the  trees  on  the  hill,  a  little  away 
from  the  house.  It  was  a  bright  golden  day, 
and  Theodora  had  lured  them  outside,  directly 
after  dinner.  The  doctor  had  been  called  away ; 
but  the  others  had  strolled  across  the  lawn  and 
up  the  hill  as  far  as  a  great  bed  of  green  and 


52  TEDDY 

gray  moss,  where  they  had  thrown  themselves 
down  under  one  of  the  great  chestnut- trees.  At 
their  right,  an  aged  birch  drooped  nearly  to  the 
earth;  behind  them,  a  pile  of  lichen-covered 
rocks  cropped  out  from  the  moss,  against  which 
the  twins  were  resting  in  an  indiscriminate 
pile.  To  Mrs.  McAlister's  mind,  there  was 
something  indescribably  pleasant  in  this  simple 
holiday-making,  and  she  gave  herself  up  as 
unreservedly  to  the  passing  hour  as  did  the 
young  people  around  her. 

All  at  once,  Theodora  pinched  Hubert's  arm, 
and  laid  her  finger  on  her  lip.  Her  quick  ear 
had  caught  the  familiar  sound  of  Billy's  wheeled 
chair,  and,  a  moment  later,  Mrs.  Farrington 
came  in  sight  over  the  low  crest  of  the  hill, 
followed  by  Patrick,  whose  face  was  flushed 
with  the  exertion  of  pushing  the  chair  along 
the  pathless  turf. 

Absorbed  in  listening  to  Hope,  Mrs.  McAlis- 
ter  heard  no  sound  until  Mrs.  Farrington  paused 
just  behind  her.  Then  she  rose  abruptly,  and 
turned  to  face  her  unexpected  guests. 

"This  is  rather  an  invasion,"  Mrs.  Farring 
ton  was  saying,  with  a  little  air  of  apology; 
"but  the  maid  said  you  were  all  out  here,  and 
she  told  me  to  come  in  search  of  you. " 


HER   BOOK  53 


For  an  instant,  Mrs.  McAlister  gazed  at  her 
guest,  at  the  slender  figure  and  the  small  oval 
face  crowned  with  its  masses  of  red-gold  hair. 
Then,  to  the  surprise  of  every  one  but  Theodora, 
she  gave  a  joyous  outcry,  — 

"  Jessie  Everett ! " 

"  Bess ! " 

Side  by  side  on  the  moss,  a  little  apart  from 
the  others,  the  two  women  dropped  down  and 
talked  incoherently  and  rapidly,  with  an  inter- 
jectional,  fragmentary  eagerness,  trying  to  tell 
in  detail  the  story  of  eighteen  years  in  as  many 
minutes,  breaking  off,  again  and  again,  to  ex 
claim  at  the  strangeness  of  the  chance  which 
had  once  more  brought  them  together.  On  one 
side,  the  tale  was  the  monotonous  record  of  the 
successful  teacher;  on  the  other  was  the  story 
of  the  brilliant  marriage,  the  years  of  happi 
ness,  of  seeing  the  best  of  life,  and  the  swift 
tragedy  of  six  months  before,  which  had  taken 
away  the  husband  and  left  the  only  son  a  physi 
cal  wreck.  The  years  had  swept  the  two  friends 
far  apart;  their  desultory  correspondence  had 
dropped ;  and  in  this  one  afternoon  of  their  first 
meeting,  they  could  only  sketch  in  the  bare  out 
lines,  and  leave  time  to  do  the  rest. 

"And  this  is  my  only  child,"  Mrs.  Farring 


54  TEDDY 

ton  said  at  last.  "You  have  so  many  now, 
Bess,  be  generous  with  them,  and  let  Will  have 
as  much  good  of  them  as  he  can.  Your  Teddy 
has  been  very  kind  to  him  already. " 

"Teddy?" 

"Yes,  Theodora  as  she  calls  herself.  She 
has  been  making  neighborly  calls  by  way  of  the 
fence,  and  she  and  Will  are  excellent  friends 
already.  What  an  unusual  girl  she  is ! " 

There  came  a  little  look  of  perplexity  in  Mrs. 
McAlister's  eyes. 

"  Yes ;  and  yet  I  find  her  the  hardest  one  of 
them  all  to  get  at.  The  fact  is,  Jessie,  I  have 
two  or  three  problems  to  deal  with,  and  Theo 
dora  is  not  the  least  of  them.  Hope  and  Hu 
bert  are  conventional  enough,  and  Phebe  is 
openly  fractious;  but  Theodora  is  more  com 
plex.  She  's  the  most  interesting  one  to  me, 
but  she  is  decidedly  elusive." 

"I  wish  she  were  mine,"  Mrs.  Farrington 
said  enviously.  "I  have  so  longed  for  a  daugh 
ter,  and  she  would  be  so  good  for  Will.  He 
does  n't  know  anybody  here,  and  he  is  so  handi 
capped  that  he  can't  get  acquainted  easily.  I 
know  he  gets  horribly  tired  of  me.  Women 
are  n't  good  for  boys,  either ;  and  now  that  he 
is  so  pitifully  helpless,  I  have  to  watch  myself 


HER  BOOK  55 


all  the  time  not  to  coddle  him  to  death.  I  hate 
a  prig;  you  know  I  always  did,  Bess,  and  I  am 
in  terror  of  turning  my  boy  into  one.  I  shall 
borrow  your  Teddy,  as  often  as  I  can,  for  she 
is  the  healthiest  companion  that  he  can  have. " 

Billy,  meanwhile,  had  promptly  been  made 
to  feel  at  home  among  the  young  people.  With 
Theodora  to  act  as  mistress  of  ceremonies  and 
introduce  him,  it  had  been  impossible  for  him 
to  feel  himself  long  a  stranger.  Patrick  had 
retired  to  a  distant  seat,  and  the  McAlisters 
settled  themselves  in  a  group  around  the  chair, 
Theodora  close  at  his  side  with  her  hand  rest 
ing  on  the  wheel,  as  if  to  mark  her  proprietor 
ship.  She  was  quick  to  see  that  both  Hope  and 
Hubert  approved  of  Billy,  and  she  felt  a  certain 
pride  in  him,  as  being  her  discovery.  Even 
Hubert's  prejudice  against  the  crippled  back 
and  the  wheeled  chair  appeared  to  have  van 
ished  at  the  sight  of  the  alert  face  and  the 
sound  of  the  gay  laugh.  Billy  was  in  one  of 
his  most  jovial  moods,  and  Theodora  knew  well 
enough  that  at  such  times  he  was  wellnigh 
irresistible. 

Phebe,  awed  to  silence  by  the  chair  and  the 
cushions,  eyed  the  guest  in  meditative  curios 
ity;  but  Allyn  was  not  so  easily  satisfied. 


56  TEDDY 

From  his  seat  in  Hope's  lap,  he  lifted  up  his 
piping  little  voice. 

"  What  for  you  ride  in  a  baby  caj  ?  " 

No  one  heeded  him,  and  he  reiterated  his 
query,  this  time  accompanying  it  with  an  ex 
planatory  forefinger. 

"  What  for  you  ride  in  a  baby  caj  ?  " 

"  Hush,  Allyn, "  Hope  whispered. 

"  Yes ;  but  what  for  ? "  Allyn  persisted. 
"  Why  does  n't  you  get  up  and  say,  '  Pretty 
well,  fank  you  '  ?  " 

Billy  flushed  and  felt  a  momentary  desire 
to  hurl  one  of  his  cushions  at  the  child.  For 
the  most  part,  he  was  not  sensitive  about  his 
temporary  helplessness;  yet  among  all  these 
strangers  who  had  never  seen  him  in  his 
strength,  he  was  uncomfortably  conscious  of 
the  difference  between  himself  and  Hubert. 

Theodora  saw  the  heightened  color  in  his 
cheeks.  Without  a  word,  she  rose,  picked  up 
Allyn  in  her  arms  and  bore  him  away  to  the 
house,  sternly  regardless  of  the  protesting 
shrieks  which  floated  out  behind  her.  She 
was  absent  for  some  time.  When  she  came 
back,  it  was  to  find  that  Hope  had  moved  into 
her  old  place,  and  that  there  was  no  room  for 
her  beside  the  chair.  Billy  was  talking  eagerly 


HER  BOOK  57 


to  Hope,  whose  pretty,  gentle  face  was  raised 
towards  him.  Theodora  felt  a  momentary 
pleasure  in  her  pretty  sister ;  but  this  was  fol 
lowed  by  an  acute  pang  of  jealousy  to  find 
herself  quite  unnoticed.  For  an  instant,  she 
hesitated;  then  she  settled  herself  slightly  at 
one  side  and  back  of  the  chair,  in  a  position 
where  she  could  be  addressed  only  with  an 
effort. 

A  little  later,  Billy  turned  and  called  her  by 
name.  She  was  sitting  in  moody  silence,  her 
elbows  on  her  knees,  her  chin  in  her  hands. 

"  What  ?  "  she  asked  indifferently. 

"Come  over  here,  Teddy,"  Hope  said. 

"  Thank  you,  I  like  it  better  here. " 

There  was  a  crushing  finality  in  her  tone. 
For  a  moment,  Billy's  eyes  met  those  of  Hope, 
and  his  lips  curled  into  a  smile.  It  was  only 
for  an  instant;  but  Theodora  saw  the  glance, 
and  it  kindled  all  her  smouldering  jealousy  of 
her  sister.  For  two  weeks  she  had  been  giving 
all  her  odd  moments  to  her  new  neighbor,  and 
now,  because  Hope  was  pretty  and  dainty  and 
quiet  and  all  things  that  she  was  not,  Billy  had 
promptly  turned  his  back  on  her  and  devoted 
himself  to  Hope.  In  her  passing  vexation,  she 
quite  forgot  to  take  into  account  that  she  her- 


58  TEDDY 

self,  not  Billy,  had  been  the  movable  quantity, 
and  that  the  time  she  had  given  him  had  been 
hours  of  keen  enjoyment  to  herself.  Theodora 
was  no  saint.  She  was  humanly  tempestuous, 
superhumanly  jealous.  She  could  love  her 
friends  to  distraction ;  she  could  give  her  time 
and  strength  and  thought  to  them  unreservedly ; 
but  in  return  she  demanded  a  soleness  of  affec 
tion  which  should  match  her  own. 

"  Where  are  you  going,  Ted  ?  "  Hubert  called 
after  her. 

"Into  the  house." 

"What  for?" 

"  Because  I  want  to.  Besides,  I  must  see  to 
Allyn." 

"Coming  back?" 

She  turned  her  head  and  looked  back.  Billy 
was  watching  her  curiously. 

"No;  not  now." 

Two  hours  later,  she  was  searching  her  brain 
for  an  excuse  for  going  over  to  the  Farring- 
tons'.  She  felt  an  imperative  need  to  see  Billy 
before  bedtime,  to  assure  herself  that  they  were 
to  meet  on  the  old  terms.  No  excuse  came  into 
her  mind,  however;  and  she  passed  a  restless 
evening  and  a  sleepless  night. 


HER  BOOK  59 


CHAPTER  FIVE 

"  T_T  'SH!"  Phebe  said  peremptorily. 

Isabel  giggled  again,  a  little  osten 
tatiously,  and  covered  her  mouth  with  the  palm 
of  her  hand. 

"H'sh!"  Phebe  whispered.  "She'll  hear 
you,  Isabel  St.  John.  Wait  till  she  is  hearing 
the  first  geography,  and  then  we  '11  do  it." 

It  was  at  that  hour  of  the  afternoon  when 
even  the  most  industrious  of  grammar-school 
pupils  feels  his  zeal  for  learning  grow  less  with 
every  tick  of  the  clock.  Isabel  and  Phebe, 
however,  were  never  remarkable  for  their  zeal. 
In  fact,  their  teachers  had  never  been  able  to 
decide  whether  they  were  more  bright  or  more 
lazy.  Both  characteristics  were  so  well  devel 
oped  that  the  hours  they  spent  in  the  school 
room  were  chiefly  devoted  to  exploits  of  a  most 
unscholastic  nature. 

The  schoolroom  of  Number  Nine,  Union 
School,  was  much  like  all  other  schoolrooms, 
save  in  two  essential  particulars.  The  building 
was  old  and  was  heated  with  stoves,  which 


60  TEDDY 

necessitated  the  use  of  two  huge  zinc  screens  to 
keep  the  direct  heat  from  the  pupils  near  by ; 
and  the  room  boasted,  aside  from  the  usual 
ranks  of  desks,  one  extra  double  desk  placed 
with  its  back  against  the  window  at  the  side  of 
the  room,  and  in  close  proximity  to  the  stoves 
and  the  sheltering  screens.  Two  months  be 
fore,  when  promotion  of  classes  had  brought 
Phebe  and  Isabel  to  the  room,  their  quick  eyes 
had  taken  in  the  inherent  advantages  of  this 
position. 

"  Please,  Miss  Hulburt,  may  we  sit  here  ? " 
Phebe  had  asked. 

"  What  makes  you  choose  that  place  ?  "  Miss 
Hulburt  had  inquired. 

"Because  the  light  is  so  good,"  Isabel  had 
replied  ingenuously. 

And  Phebe  had  added,  — 

"  And  then,  you  know,  we  shall  be  away  from 
the  others,  so  we  sha'n't  be  able  to  whisper. 
Truly,  Miss  Hulburt,  we  've  turned  over  a  new 
leaf." 

Phebe  neglected  to  state  in  which  direction 
the  leaf  had  been  turned.  Miss  Hulburt  had 
eyed  her  distrustfully;  then  she  had  granted 
the  favor.  Three  days  later,  she  had  regretted 
her  concession. 


HER  BOOK  61 


The  seat  was  so  near  the  front  corner  of  the 
room  that  the  schoolmistress  was  obliged  to 
turn  her  head  to  see  the  children.  She  was  a 
bloodless,  thin-necked,  lackadaisical  young  per 
son,  in  little-eyed  spectacles,  who,  in  her  youth, 
had  been  compared  to  a  drooping  lily.  From 
that  time  onward,  she  had  given  all  her  thought 
to  the  cultivation  of  slow,  graceful,  lily-like 
motions,  until  it  had  become  second  nature  for 
her  to  ogle  and  smirk  and  roll  her  head  gently 
this  way  and  that.  It  had  not  only  rendered 
her  intolerable  to  the  unprejudiced  observer, 
but  it  had  made  her  physically  incapable  of 
turning  about  quickly  enough  to  catch  the  cul 
prits  in  the  corner.  Every  disturbance  in  the 
room,  and  they  were  not  few  nor  slight,  ap 
peared  to  come  from  the  one  source ;  yet  by  the 
time  Miss  Hulburt  could  focus  her  little  spec 
tacles  upon  them,  Phebe  and  Isabel  were  sway 
ing  to  and  fro  and  whispering  their  lessons  to 
themselves  with  an  intentness  which  was  al 
most  religious. 

It  was  one  of  the  warm,  bright  days  of  late 
October,  and  the  children  had  insisted  on  open 
ing  the  window  behind  them,  not  so  much  for 
the  sake  of  the  clear,  soft  air  as  for  the  further 
ance  of  their  nefarious  schemes.  In  the  lap  of 


62 


each  child  lay  a  tiny  china  doll,  a  long  string, 
and  a  box  of  what,  at  first  sight,  appeared  to 
be  parti-colored  rags.  A  closer  inspection, 
however,  showed  that  the  rags  were  all  round 
and  pierced  with  three  holes,  one  in  the  middle, 
the  others  slightly  to  one  side. 

When  the  first  geography  lesson  was  called, 
the  girls  propped  their  open  books  before  them, 
and  abandoned  themselves  to  the  task  in  hand. 
Selecting  a  circle  of  cloth  from  the  box,  each 
one  of  them  proceeded  to  clothe  her  doll  by  the 
simple  process  of  thrusting  the  head  and  arms 
through  the  holes  and  tying  a  string  about  the 
waist.  Isabel's  doll  was  a  negro  and  was 
decked  in  scarlet.  Phebe's  was  of  Caucasian 
extraction,  and  preferred  blue.  The  dolls  were 
robed  and  the  long  strings  were  made  fast  to 
their  necks.  Stealthily  and  slowly  the  girls 
poked  them  through  the  crack  of  the  open  win 
dow  and  let  them  down,  swinging  them  back 
and  forth  until  they  heard  them  click  against 
the  window  of  the  room  below.  Then  they 
jerked  the  strings  sharply  upward,  and  Isabel 
giggled  again.  Phebe  coughed  to  smother  the 
sound,  and  then  gave  her  friend  a  warning 
pinch. 

Miss  Hulburt  was  turning  in  their  direction. 


HER  BOOK  63 


Instantly  Phebe  raised  her  hand,  shaking  it 
slightly  and  clearing  her  throat  to  attract 
attention. 

"  Well  ?     What  is  it,  Phebe  ?  " 

"  Please,  how  do  you  pronounce  p-h-t-h-i-s-i-c  ?  " 

"Phthisic.  Where  do  you  find  anything 
about  it,  Phebe  ?  "  Miss  Hulburt  felt  that  she 
was  developing  in  craftiness. 

"  In  my  — •  geography. " 

Miss  Hulburt's  smile  showed  that  she  be 
lieved  she  had  caught  the  young  sinner  napping. 

"  But  my  book  does  n't  have  any  such  word. " 

Isabel  raised  her  hand  in  support  of  her 
friend. 

"  If  you  please,  Miss  Hulburt,  we  're  reading 
in  the  back  part,  about  the  South  Sea  Islands. 
It  says  it's  very  common  there." 

"Phebe,"  Isabel  whispered,  a  little  later; 
"what  is  it?" 

"What's  what?" 

"P-h-t-h-     You  know." 

"I  d'  know,  something  to  eat,  I  guess.  We 
had  it  in  spelling,  last  term,  and  I  happened  to 
think  of  it.  Oh,  Isabel ! "  For  the  door  opened, 
and  the  teacher  of  the  room  below  came  into 
the  room. 

An  hour  later,  Hubert  and  Theodora  sat  on 


64  TEDDY 

the  edge  of  the  piazza,  discussing  a  coming 
entertainment  to  be  given  by  the  pupils  of  the 
high  school.  The  piazza  came  to  the  side  of 
the  driveway,  and  now  they  curled  up  their 
toes  to  allow  the  doctor  to  pass  them,  driving 
his  new  and  favorite  horse,  Vigil. 

"  What  a  beauty  she  is  !  "  Hubert  said,  as  the 
carriage  passed  them. 

"  Is  n't  she  ?     I  'm  dying  to  ride  her. " 

"Better  not,"  Hubert  cautioned  her.  "She 
would  n't  stand  the  things  old  Prince  does,  and 
you  wouldn't  have  any  show  at  all,  if  you  tried 
to  manage  her." 

"I  don't  believe  it,"  Theodora  returned. 
"Papa  said  I  was  a  good  horsewoman,  and  I 
mean  to  try  Vigil,  some  day.  'T  is  n't  strength 
that  counts  with  a  horse,  anyway ;  it 's  gump 
tion." 

"  What  '11  you  take  for  the  word  ?  "  Hubert 
asked  lazily.  He  was  lounging  in  the  sun  with 
his  hands  in  his  pockets  and  his  back  against  a 
pillar,  and  he  felt  too  comfortable  to  be  inclined 
for  a  discussion. 

"  The  word  's  all  right. "  Theodora  tossed 
her  book  into  a  chair  behind  her.  "It  means 
exactly  what  I  want.  It  isn't  common  sense, 
nor  knowledge,  nor  reasonableness ;  it 's  just 


HER   BOOK  65 


gumption  and  nothing  else.  It 's  what  Miss 
Hulburt  hasn't,"  she  added,  as  she  glanced 
up  the  street.  "Here  she  comes,  Hu.  How 
we  used  to  hate  her,  when  we  were  in  her 
room !  Why,  she  's  stopped  papa,  and  he  's 
coming  back  with  her.  Babe  must  be  in  some 
fresh  scrape." 

Hubert  rose  hastily. 

"  That  settles  it.  If  she  's  coming  here,  I  'm 
off." 

"  Where  going  ?  " 

"I  don't  know.  Over  to  the  Farringtons', 
maybe,  or  else  to  the  library." 

"Teddy, "the  doctor  called;  "I  wish  you'd 
come  and  see  to  Vigil.  I  have  n't  any  halter, 
and  I  sha'n't  be  long.  Miss  Hulburt  wants  to 
see  me  about  Phebe.  Just  let  the  reins  lie 
loose  on  her  back,  and  she'll  be  all  right." 

"On  Miss  Hulburt's  back?  "  Theodora  ques 
tioned,  with  a  giggle. 

The  doctor  laughed,  as  he  stepped  out  of  the 
low,  open  buggy,  handed  the  lines  to  his  daugh 
ter,  and  turned  to  speak  to  the  teacher  who 
stood  simpering  at  his  side. 

Within  ten  minutes,  Theodora  was  heartily 
tired  of  her  position  as  amateur  groom.  Miss 
Hulburt,  always  garrulously  confidential,  was 
5 


66  TEDDY 

pouring  into  the  doctor's  impatient  ears  all  her 
theory  of  Phebe's  temper  and  training.  She 
was  absorbed  in  her  subject,  but  to  the  others 
the  time  crept  heavily  by.  Allyn  came  around 
the  corner  of  the  house,  and  Theodora  hailed 
him. 

"  Come,  Allyn ;  want  to  come  and  play  go  to 
ride  with  sister  ?  " 

With  childish  clumsiness  Allyn  clambered 
into  the  buggy.  For  a  time,  he  was  content 
to  jounce  rapturously  on  the  cushion  and  snap 
the  buckle  of  the  reins.  Then  he  too  wearied 
for  change. 

"  Make  the  horsey  go,  Teddy, "  he  demanded. 

"Oh,  no,  Allyn;  sister  mustn't.  We  must 
wait  for  papa." 

"Make  him  go,"  Allyn  persisted. 

Theodora  hesitated.  Like  the  immortal  Tod- 
die,  Allyn 's  strength  lay  in  his  power  of  end 
less  iteration.  She  foresaw  a  coming  crisis  in 
his  temper,  and,  moreover,  his  wishes  coincided 
with  her  own  to  a  remarkable  degree.  Vigil 
was  becoming  uneasy,  and  a  belated  gadfly  was 
making  continued  attacks  upon  her  sensitive 
skin.  Why  not  drive  down  the  street  and 
around  the  block,  and  shake  off  the  annoying 
guest  ? 


HER   BOOK  67 


"  Will  you  sit  quite  still,  Allyn,  if  sister  will 
drive  just  a  little,  little  way  ?  " 

Allyn  smiled  rapturously. 

"Ess,"  he  hissed. 

Theodora  gave  a  hasty  glance  at  the  house, 
as  she  tightened  the  lines. 

"I  know  he  'd  think  it  was  the  best  thing  to 
do,"  she  argued  with  her  conscience.  "Vigil 
is  so  uneasy  she  would  n't  stand  much  longer, 
and  this  will  quiet  her  down.  Besides,  I  've 
always  been  used  to  driving." 

The  gadfly  went  too.  Vigil  was  fretted  by 
standing,  and  she  quickened  her  pace.  Before 
she  quite  realized  the  change,  Theodora  was 
being  whirled  down  the  street  at  a  round  trot. 

"  Whoa !  "  she  urged.  «  Whoa,  Vigil !  Sh-h-h ! " 

But  Vigil  refused  to  sh-h-h.  She  felt  an  un 
familiar  hand  on  the  lines,  and  her  sensitive 
mouth  assured  her  that  the  hand  was  shaking  a 
little.  Accordingly,  she  dropped  her  ears  back, 
gave  an  odd  little  kick  with  her  hind  legs,  and 
swung  round  a  corner  with  the  carriage  on  two 
wheels  behind  her. 

"Allyn,"  Theodora  said,  when  they  had  gone 
around  another  corner  in  the  same  uncertain 
fashion;  "now  you  must  mind  sister  and  do 
just  what  she  says. "  The  girl's  face  was  white 


68  TEDDY 

to  the  lips ;  but  her  voice  was  steady  and  brave. 
"  Climb  over  the  back  of  the  seat,  lie  down  flat 
in  the  bottom  of  the  carriage,  and  then  roll  out 
on  the  ground. " 

"I  don't  want  to,"  whined  the  child.  "I 
wants  to  ride." 

"But  you  must,  or  sister  won't  take  you 
again.  You  may  be  thrown  out  and  hurt,  if 
you  don't  mind  sister." 

"  It  hurts  to  roll  out, "  he  argued. 
"No;  not  a  bit."  Theodora  felt  herself  a 
heartless  liar;  but  she  had  lost  all  control  of 
Vigil,  and  she  knew  that  this  was  the  best 
chance  of  safety  for  her  baby  brother.  "Now 
hold  on  tight.  I  don't  believe  you  can  climb 
over. " 

All  the  boy  nature  inherent  in  Allyn  re 
sponded  to  the  challenge.  Lithe  as  a  little 
monkey,  he  scrambled  over  the  seat,  lay  down 
and  took  the  fateful  roll.  Vigil  shied,  just 
then,  and  Allyn  landed  in  a  ball,  in  a  bed  of 
burdocks.  His  wails  followed  the  flying  horse  ; 
but  they  were  wails  of  temper,  more  than  of 
physical  injury,  and  Theodora's  main  anxiety 
was  relieved. 

Two  blocks  farther  down  the  street,  the  buggy 
collided  with  a  hay  wagon.  There  was  a  crash, 


THEODORA  WENT  FLYING  ACROSS  TUP:  KOAD  —  Page  69. 


HER  BOOK  69 


the  horse  broke  free,  and  Theodora  went  flying 
across  the  road,  landing  in  an  indiscriminate, 
dusty  pile  just  in  front  of  the  Farringtons' 
carriage. 

That  evening,  the  doctor  came  into  the 
library,  where  his  wife  sat  alone  in  the  fire 
light.  He  looked  tired  and  worried,  as  he 
threw  himself  down  into  an  easy  chair.  His 
wife  came  forward  to  his  side. 

"  You  poor  old  boy ! "  she  said  tenderly,  as 
she  stroked  his  hair. 

He  smiled  wearily. 

"I  wouldn't  have  had  it  happen  for  any 
amount  of  money,  Bess,"  he  said,  as  he  reached 
up  and  took  her  hand.  "  It 's  smashed  the 
buggy,  and  demoralized  my  favorite  horse,  and 
bumped  Allyn,  and  given  us  all  a  scare." 

"  How  is  Theodora  ?  " 

"Badly  frightened  and  very  meek.  Her 
bruises  don't  count;  but  I  don't  think  she'll 
do  it  again.  I  gave  her  a  plain  talk,  while  I 
was  looking  over  her  wounds,  and  I  think  she 
knows  I  mean  what  I  say.  It  is  a  miracle  that 
both  children  weren't  killed;  but  Allyn  is  all 
right  now,  and  Teddy  will  be,  in  a  day  or  two. 
She  will  be  rather  stiff,  to-morrow,  but  I  'm  not 
sure  that  I  'm  sorry. " 


70  TEDDY 

"  Poor  Teddy !  "  his  wife  said,  laughing. 

"  Poor  me  ! "  he  answered.  "  And  poor  you ! 
You  will  think  I  have  brought  you  into  an  un 
disciplined  horde  of  savages,  Bess.  I  feel  like 
Job,  myself,  for  one  thing  follows  another.  I 
shouldn't  have  left  the  horse  with  Teddy,  in 
the  first  place,  if  Miss  Hulburt  hadn't  come  to 
me  with  a  tale  of  woe  about  Phebe. " 

"  What  about  Phebe  ?  "  In  spite  of  herself, 
Mrs.  McAlister  laughed. 

"Some  school  scrape  or  other.  Phebe  is 
naughty  as  she  can  be,  and,  worst  of  all,  she  is 
sly.  That's  not  like  Teddy.  Ted  hasn't  a 
dishonorable  pore  in  her  skin.  She  is  head 
strong  and  impetuous ;  but  when  she  has  done 
wrong,  she  conies  forward  and  tells  the  whole 
story  and  takes  the  consequences.  She  has 
made  me  more  trouble,  one  time  and  another, 
than  all  the  rest  of  them  put  together,  and 
yet—  '  he  hesitated,  then  he  went  on;  "and 
yet,  I  honestly  think  she  's  the  flower  of  tho 
flock." 

"A  climbing  rose,  not  a  violet,"  Mrs.  McAl 
ister  suggested. 

"A  snapdragon,  if  you  will.  She  has  char 
acter  and  force  and  brains  enough  for  a  dozen ; 
and  if  we  can  provide  a  safe  outlet  for  her  extra 


HER  BOOK  71 


vitality,  1  think  she  will  make  us  proud  of  her 

yet." 

"You're  right,  Jack,"  Mrs.  McAlister  an 
swered  heartily.  "The  girl  has  splendid  possi 
bilities.  As  you  say,  she  only  needs  some  sort 
of  an  outlet  for  her  energy.  She  's  a  motherly, 
womanish  child,  too,  as  much  so  as  Hope,  in 
her  way.  She  's  got  to  have  something  to  love, 
and  to  fuss  over,  and  to  fight  for.  I  sometimes 
think  that  Will  Farrington  may  supply  a  cer 
tain  something  that  she  needs." 

The  doctor  rose  and  stood  on  the  rug,  facing 
his  wife.  Little  by  little,  his  face  had  lost  its 
anxiety  and  now,  at  her  last  words,  he  laughed 
jovially. 

"  Will  Farrington !  Then  Heaven  help  him, 
Bess  !  'T  will  be  six  months  at  least  before  the 
boy  can  walk  to  amount  to  anything,  and  help 
less  as  he  is  and  energetic  as  Teddy  is,  she  '11 
be  sure  to  break  his  neck.  If  she  is  going  to 
devote  herself  to  Will  Farrington,  I  '11  send  for 
Dr.  Parker  and  a  cord  or  two  of  extra  splints." 


72  TEDDY 


CHAPTER   SIX 

where  are  you  going,  Hu  ?  " 
"What?" 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?  " 

Hubert  crooked  his  hand  at  the  back  of  his 
ear. 

"  Speak  a  little  louder,  please.     I  'm  deef. " 

Phebe  flew  at  him  and  caught  his  arm. 

"Hubert   McAlister,  tell   me  where  you  are 
going. " 

"  Oh,  is  that  what  you  said  ?  " 

"  You  knew  it  perfectly  well.     Where  are  you 
going  to  ?  " 

"Over  to  Billy's." 

"Then  I'm  going,  too." 

"No,  you  aren't." 

"But  I  will.     Why  not?" 

"  Because  I  don't  want  you.    You  're  so  noisy 
you  tire  Billy." 

"No,  I  don't.     Boys  don't  get  tired  so  easy. 
Besides,  he  asked  me  to  come. " 


HER   BOOK  73 


He  shook  himself  free  from  her  hands.  She 
ran  around  him  and  danced  down  the  walk  be 
fore  him,  laughing  like  a  mocking  elf.  All 
at  once,  she  found  herself  in  Hubert's  strong 
arms. 

"Now,  Babe,  you  must  go  back.  I  don't 
want  you." 

"What  can  I  do?"  she  whined.  "Every 
body  's  gone.  Mamma  has  gone  to  ride  with 
Mrs.  Farrington,  Hope  's  away,  Teddy  's  away, 
and  you  're  going." 

"  But  mamma  told  you  to  stay  and  play  with 
Allyn." 

"I  don't  like  Allyn.     I  want  to  go  with  you." 

"You  can't." 

"I  will." 

She  struggled  to  free  herself.  Hubert  was 
tall  and  strong  for  his  years,  so  that  his  sister 
was  powerless  in  his  grasp.  He  stood  for  a 
moment,  holding  her,  while  he  pondered  what 
to  do;  then  a  sudden  amused  light  came  into 
his  eyes.  Turning,  he  went  away  to  the  barn 
where,  still  holding  Phebe  with  one  hand,  with 
the  other  he  rolled  an  empty  barrel  into  the 
middle  of  the  floor  and  brought  out  a  bushel 
basket.  Then,  before  his  astonished  sister 
could  fathom  his  intention  or  rebel,  he  had 


74  TEDDY 

popped  her  into  the  barrel,  covered  her  with 
the  basket  which  made  a  firm,  close  lid,  and 
walked  away  to  the  Farringtons'  house. 

It  was  the  last  of  the  golden  Indian  summer, 
and  cold  weather  was  at  hand.  By  this  time, 
the  two  households  were  living  on  a  most  in 
formal,  friendly  basis.  Mrs.  Farrington  and 
Mrs.  McAlister  had  dropped  back  into  the  old 
intimacy  of  their  college  days,  and  the  young 
McAlisters  were  fast  finding  out  that  a  boy  was 
a  boy,  in  spite  of  a  crippled  back  and  a  wheeled 
chair.  Hubert  and  Billy  were  good  friends, 
and  Hope  treated  the  invalid  with  a  gentle, 
serious  kindness  which  won  his  heart  as  surely 
as  her  dainty  beauty  appealed  to  his  eyes.  And 
yet,  after  all,  it  was  Teddy  for  whom  he  cared 
the  most,  Teddy  who  coddled  him  and  squabbled 
with  him  and  ordered  him  about  by  turns.  For 
the  sake  of  her  bright,  breezy  companionship, 
of  her  original,  ungirl-like  way  of  looking  at 
things,  he  endured  the  ordering  and  the  cod 
dling,  and,  in  spite  of  the  halo  of  sanctity  which 
should  have  surrounded  his  semi-invalidism, 
it  must  be  confessed  that  he  bore  out  his  own 
part  in  the  squabbles. 

Even  the  coddling,  as  time  went  on,  came  to 
be  rather  enjoyable.  There  was  nothing  senti- 


HER   BOOK  75 


mental  about  it ;  it  was  only  the  natural  result 
of  the  strong  instinct  of  motherhood  which  be 
longs  to  such  natures  as  Theodora's.  More 
over,  there  were  days  and  days  when  the  old 
pain  came  back  to  Billy  and  racked  him  until 
he  was  too  weak  for  the  wheeled  chair,  and  he 
could  only  lie  on  the  sofa  and  endure  the  pass 
ing  hours  as  best  he  might.  In  those  days, 
Theodora  never  failed  him.  She  learned  to 
know  the  flush  of  his  cheeks,  the  glitter  in  his 
eyes,  and  her  brisk  step  grew  gentle,  her  clear, 
glad  voice  grew  low.  Strange  to  say,  it  was  on 
those  days  that  Billy  wanted  her.  He  seemed 
to  gain  rest  from  her  exuberant  strength ;  and 
Hope  he  regarded  as  the  pleasant  companion 
for  his  better  days,  when  he  could  laugh  and 
talk  with  her,  and  treat  her  with  the  chivalry 
which  her  delicate  prettiness  appeared  to  him 
to  demand.  It  mattered  less  about  Theodora, 
he  told  himself.  She  was  only  another  fellow, 
and  she  could  be  treated  accordingly. 

Hubert  had  made  his  call  upon  Billy  and 
departed  again,  and  Phebe  had  freed  herself  by 
tipping  over  the  barrel,  turning  herself  about, 
and  kicking  away  the  basket;  'and  still  Theo 
dora  sat  in  the  Farringtons'  cosy  library,  be 
side  the  open  fire.  Billy  delighted  in  reading 


76  TEDDY 

aloud,  and  he  had  been  reading  to  her  for  an 
hour,  while  she  sat  dreamily  watching  the  fire. 
Then  he  dropped  the  book  face  downward  on 
his  knee,  and  little  by  little  their  desultory 
conversation  stopped.  All  at  once,  Theodora 
started  up. 

"  Oh,  de-r  ,  I  forgot.  I  told  papa  I  'd  do  an 
errand  fo  him,  and  I  must  go." 

Billy  yawned. 

"Wish  I  could  go,  too." 

She  looked  at  him  suddenly. 

"  Why  don't  you  ?  " 

"As  how?" 

"In  your  chair,  of  course.  You  needn't 
think  you  can  walk  yet,  even  if  papa  does  say 
you  are  gaining,  every  day." 

"  Really,  do  you  want  me  to  go,  too  ?  " 

"Of  course.  Shall  I  call  Patrick  to  bring 
the  chair  ? " 

"  I  've  my  whistle,  you  know. "  He  played 
with  it  irresolutely.  "  Are  you  sure  I  won't  bo 
in  the  way  ?  " 

"  What  nonsense ! " 

She  stood  leaning  on  the  mantel  while  Patrick 
made  ready  the  chair.  Then,  moved  by  some 
sudden  sense  of  delicacy,  she  busied  herself  with 
her  own  wraps  when  the  man  bent  down  and 


HER  BOOK  77 


lifted  his  young  master  in  his  strong  arms. 
Since  the  first  day  of  their  meeting,  she  had 
never  seen  Billy  moved,  and  she  was  struck 
more  keenly  than  at  first  with  the  contrast  be 
tween  the  utter  limpness  of  his  lower  limbs  and 
the  bright  activity  of  the  rest  of  the  boy.  For 
an  instant,  her  heart  gave  a  quick  thump,  half 
of  pity,  half  of  loyalty  and  protecting  affection. 
Then  she  laid  her  hands  on  the  bar  of  Billy's 
chair. 

"That's  all,  Patrick,"  she  said,  nodding  up 
at  the  tall  man  beside  her. 

Patrick  surveyed  her  approvingly.  He  was 
critical  by  nature,  and  his  smiles  were  rare ; 
but  he  liked  Theodora  for  her  kindness  to  his 
young  master,  and  he  unbent  something  of  his 
majesty  before  her,  rather  to  the  surprise  of 
Mrs.  Farrington,  who  was  quite  accustomed  to 
seeing  her  guests  quail  before  the  glance  of  her 
serving-man. 

"  Sha'n't  I  be  going  with  you,  Miss  Theo 
dora  ? "  he  asked. 

"Of  course.  What  do  you  suppose  I  am 
going  to  do  without  you  ? "  Billy  answered. 

But  Theodora  interposed. 

"You  needn't  come,  Patrick.  I  am  going  to 
take  Mr.  Will,  myself." 


78  TEDDY 

"Oh,  I  say,  Teddy!"  Billy  straightened  up 
in  his  chair. 

"That's  all  right,"  she  said  gayly,  as  she 
pushed  the  chair  away  from  the  steps.  "Let 
me  do  it,  Billy ;  it 's  much  nicer  to  go  by  our 
selves  without  any  Patrick,  and  I  promise  not 
to  upset  you." 

"But  you  ought  n't  to  do  it;  'tis  n't  the  sort 
of  thing  a  girl  ought  to  do,"  he  urged.  "  Truly, 
Ted'1  I  don't  feel  as  if  I  could  stand  it, 
sc  .uehow. " 

Looking  into  his  eyes,  as  he  turned  to  face 
her,  Theodora  read  his  sensitive  reluctance  to 
receive  a  service  of  this  kind  from  a  girl,  and  a 
friend  of  but  a  few  weeks'  standing.  She  let 
go  the  handle  of  his  chair  and  came  forward  to 
his  side,  where  she  bent  over  him,  under  the 
pretext  of  settling  one  of  the  cushions  which 
had  slipped  aside. 

"I  wish  you'd  let  me  do  it  for  you,  Billy," 
she  said,  looking  honestly  down  into  his  appeal 
ing  eyes.  "I  know  girls  don't  usually  do  this 
sort  of  thing  for  boys;  but  it  isn't  for  always, 
you  know,  and  there  is  n't  much  that  I  can  do 
for  you.  If  we  're  going  to  be  real,  true  friends, 
you  oughtn't  to  mind  it  n  bit.  You'd  do  ten 
times  as  much  for  mCo  Please  say  I  can  take 


HER  BOOK  79 


you  out  often,  till  you  are  so  you  can  run  away 
from  me.  You  know  you  'd  rather  go  with  me 
than  with  Patrick."  And  she  looked  down  at 
him  with  a  merry  frankness  which  took  away 
the  last  shade  of  sensitiveness  which  Billy  was 
ever  to  know  in  her  company. 

It  was  the  first  of  many  similar  expeditions. 
The  chair  was  so  light,  and  Theodora  was  so 
strong  for  her  years,  that  it  never  tired  her, 
while  Billy  soon  discovered  that  "  a  walk  "  with 
Theodora  was  quite  another  thing  from  the  dull 
and  decorous  outings  when  Patrick  tooled  him 
along  through  the  town,  in  a  solemnly  respect 
ful  silence.  With  Teddy's  hand  on  the  bar  of 
his  chair  and  Teddy's  chatter  in  his  ears,  in  a 
week  he  learned  more  of  the  town  than  he  had 
done  in  the  past  three  months,  and  he  came 
home,  hungry  and  eager  as  a  boy  could  be,  full 
of  blithe  gossip  and  fun,  to  enliven  his  mother 
over  the  dinner-table. 

"Tell  you  what,  it  was  a  good  day  for  us 
when  we  came  here,"  he  remarked,  one  night 
in  December,  when  he  and  his  mother  were 
settled  by  the  open  fire  in  the  library. 

His  mother  looked  up  from  her  book. 

"  How  do  you  mean  ?  " 

"  Everything,  especially  the  Macs.     There  's 


80  TEDDY 

Mrs.  Mac  for  you,  and  Teddy  for  me.  What 
more  can  you  want  ?  " 

"  What  about  Hope  ?  " 

"  Hope  is  a  stunner,  only  there  's  a  sort  of 
Sundayfied  flavor  to  her.  Theodora  is  better 
for  every  day.  Hope  goes  with  my  best  neck 
tie  ;  't  is  n't  always  that  I  am  able  to  live  up  to 
her.  Ted  doesn't  care  whether  I  am  sick  or 
well,  dressed  up  or  rolled  in  a  blanket;  she 
sticks  to  me  just  the  same.  I  say,  mother  ? " 

"  Well  ? " 

"Are  we  going  down  to  New  York,  this 
winter  ?  " 

"Not  till  later,  unless  you  want  to  go. 
Are  n't  you  feeling  as  well,  Will  ?  "  This 
time,  Mrs.  Farrington  threw  aside  her  book 
and  came  forward  to  her  son's  side. 

Billy  looked  up  at  her  with  merry  eyes  which 
were  the  duplicate  of  her  own. 

"  How  you  do  worry  about  me,  mother ! "  he 
said.  "  I  'm  gaining,  every  day,  and  you  ought 
to  know  it.  I  shall  be  walking  soon.  But 
you  've  been  saying  that  we  'd  go  down,  some 
time  after  Christmas,  and  I  wondered  why  we 
could  n't  take  Teddy  along  with  us.  I  can't  dis 
cover  that  she  's  ever  been  anywhere,  and  it 's 
time  she  had  a  chance.  Don't  you  think  so  ?  " 


HER   BOOK  81 


Mrs.  Farrington  looked  thoughtful. 

"I  don't  know  but  you're  right,  Will.  I've 
been  thinking  I  'd  like  to  give  her  a  little  treat, 
if  only  because  she  has  been  so  loyal  to  you.  I 
had  thought  of  something  else ;  but  if  you 
think  she  'd  like  this  better,-  we  '11  see  about  it. 
Would  you  rather  have  Teddy  than  Hubert  ?  " 

"  Yes,  I  like  Ted  better,  even  if  she  is  a  girl. 
Hubert  has  more  variety,  too,  and  wouldn't 
care  so  much  about  it." 

"Very  well;  I  will  see  about  it,"  Mrs.  Far 
rington  repeated. 

Her  son  looked  up  at  her  gratefully. 

"  What  a  trump  you  are ! "  he  said. 


82  TEDDY 


CHAPTER   SEVEN 

iet  's  see>" Teddy  curied  °ne  foot 

under  her,  in  the  depths  of  the  great 
easy-chair.  "There  must  be  two  heroines,  of 
course,  and  two,  —  no,  throe  heroes. " 

"  What  '11  you  do  with  the  odd  one  ?  "  Billy 
asked. 

"  Kill  him,  to  be  sure. "  Theodora  smacked 
her  lips.  "  When  the  girl,  his  girl,  you  know, 
marries  the  wrong  man,  he  will  —  She  paused 
and  meditatively  twisted  the  end  of  one  of  her 
long  pigtails. 

"  Will  what  ?  " 

"  That 's  what  I  'm  thinking  about.  It  must 
be  something  original,  not  poison  nor  drown 
ing.  I  know ;  I  '11  have  him  turn  sleepless,  and 
get  up  —  •  No,  he  '11  be  a  sleep-walker.  He  must 
dream  that  her  house  is  on  lire,  and  get  up  to 
save  her,  and  walk  into  the  barn  and  be  kicked 
to  death  by  her  pet  horse.  She  '11  find  him 
there  in  the  morning,  when  she  goes  to  give 
him  sugar."  In  the  triumph  of  her  lurid  end 
ing,  Theodora  made  havoc  of  her  pronouns. 


HER  BOOK  83 


Billy  pondered  on  the  situation,  clasping  his 
hands  under  his  head  and  turning  to  face  his 
friend. 

"Um-m.  That's  not  so  bad,"  he  said  at 
length.  "  It  might  possibly  happen,  even  if  it 
is  n't  likely.  I  had  an  uncle  that  somnambu- 
lated,  and  he  used  to  hide  the  sheets  in  an  old 
carriage  in  the  barn.  I  suppose  he  might  just 
as  well  have  gone  into  a  stall.  Well  ?  " 

"  And  the  other  men  would  marry  the  girls. 
This  one,  the  dead  one,  would  be  dark  and  sal 
low,  with  high  cheek-bones  and  a  thin  nose. 
The  others  would  be  more  commonplace.  I 
think  I  'd  have  them  something  like  Hu  and 
you. " 

"Thanks." 

"  Oh,  I  don't  mean  you  are  too  common ;  but 
you  aren't  a  bit  like  my  ideal  hero,"  Theodora 
said  bluntly.  "I  like  the  dead  one  best.  I 
always  do  in  stories,  if  he  's  only  hectic  enough. 
I  asked  papa  once  what  hectic  meant,  and  you 
ought  to  have  heard  him  laugh  when  I  told  him 
the  reason  I  wanted  to  know." 

"  Great  shame  I  'm  not  hectic ! "  Billy  com 
mented.  "  What  about  the  girls  ?  " 

'•One  is  light,  with  yellow  hair  and  very 
much  fun  in  her.  She  's  the  one  the  dead  man 


84  TEDDY 

likes.  The  other  is  tall  and  still  and  stately, 
like  a  lily,  with  soft,  dark  hair  that  droops  and 
is  caught  up  with  rare  old  combs." 

"  How  many  ?  " 

"Oh,  one  at  a  time,  of  course,  only  she  has 
ever  so  many,  all  of  them  of  old  silver.  Stop 
interrupting!  She  sways  when  she  walks." 

"  Gout  or  intoxication  ?  " 

"Keep  still,  Billy,  or  I  won't  tell."  Theo 
dora's  tone  was  impatient.  There  were  liber 
ties  which  not  even  Billy  was  allowed  to  take, 
and  this  story,  the  outcome  of  her  girlish 
dreams,  was  a  sacred  subject  to  her.  She  had 
pondered  over  it  for  months,  and  now  that  she 
felt  the  time  had  come  to  begin  the  actual  work 
of  writing,  she  was  revealing  the  secret  to  Billy. 
Mrs.  Farrington  was  spending  a  long  rainy 
afternoon  in  her  own  room,  writing  letters,  and 
the  two  young  people  had  the  library  to  them 
selves.  For  the  most  part,  Billy  was  listening  in 
respectful  silence ;  but  his  sense  of  humor  would 
assert  itself  occasionall}*,  and  Theodora,  like  all 
budding  authors,  was  sensitive  to  ridicule. 

Her  threat  was  enough. 

"I  won't  any  more,  Ted,"  Billy  returned 
meekly;  "only,  if  she  wobbles  like  that,  I  don't 
see  what  keeps  her  combs  from  tumbling  out. 


HER   BOOK  85 


Don't  make  her  too  lop-sided,  or  else  don't 
match  her  up  to  the  man  like  me.  I  want  girls 
that  are  put  together  tight.  That 's  one  reason 
I  like  you." 

Theodora  was  only  half  appeased  by  the  in 
tended  compliment.  She  had  a  secret  liking 
for  the  "sweet  disorder  in  the  dress,"  and,  of 
late,  she  had  vainly  attempted  to  achieve  it. 

"That's  all  right,"  she  said  rather  loftily; 
"  only  you  know  everybody  does  n't  feel  the  way 
you  do. " 

"  Of  course, "  Billy  assented  hastily.  "  What 
are  their  names,  Ted  ?  " 

"  The  dark  one  is  Violet  Clementina  Ascut- 
ney,  and  the  little  blond  one  is  Marianne  — 
with  a  final  e  —  Euphrosyne  Blackiston.  The 
men  are  Eugene  Vincent  and  Gerald  Morti 
mer,  and  the  dead  one  is  Alessandro  Stanley 
Farrington. " 

"Oh,  great  Ca?sar,  Ted!  I  can't  stand  that. 
Why  can't  you  have  a  good  plain  Jack  ?  " 

"Jack  is  fearfully  commonplace,  and  names 
do  count  for  so  much  in  a  story." 

Billy  groaned. 

"  Maybe.  Anyhow,  you  've  got  to  leave  out 
the  Farrington.  I  can't  go  that.  Which  does 
Marianne-with-a-fmal-e  take  ? " 


86  TEDDY 

"  That 's  just  it.  She  's  left  an  orphan,  rich 
as  can  be,  and  she  asks  Violet  to  live  with  her. 
Violet  is  the  only  daughter  of  a  decayed  South 
ern  family,  who  had  to  teach  for  a  living  until 
she  was  rescued  from  her  life  of  toil  by  the 
generosity  of  Marianne." 

"  With-a-final-e, "  Billy  supplemented.  His 
eyes  were  full  of  mischief,  for  Theodora's  tone 
matched  the  pomp  of  her  words. 

"Then  they  live  in  this  beautiful  house," 
Theodora  went  on,  sternly  regardless  of  his 
flippancy ;  "  with  an  old  housekeeper,  and  they 
have  beautiful  times,  parties  and  everything. 
One  stormy  night  in  summer,  when  they  are 
sitting  by  the  fire,  watching  the  blaze  and  see 
ing  pictures  in  it,  the  bell  rings  and  a  man  in 
livery  comes  in  to  tell  them  that  there  has  been 
a  run-away  accident  and  a  man  hurt.  That 's 
Alessandro,  and  I  mean  to  get  all  this  part  out 
of  papa's  books." 

"Well?" 

"  Well,  he  's  there  for  weeks,  and  the  house 
keeper  takes  care  of  him  and  the  girls  don't 
see  him ;  they  just  make  him  broth  and  things, 
and  send  them  up  to  his  room.  One  day,  when 
he  is  pale  and  interesting,  he  leaves  his  room 
and  sees  Marianne  and  falls  in  love  with  her; 


HER  BOOK  87 


but  she  never  knows  it.  He  is  poor  and  too 
honorable  to  tell  her  his  love,  so  he  just  wastes 
away,  and  she  never  guesses.  It 's  all  terribly 
sad." 

"  Well,  yes,  I  should  say  so, "  Billy  observed. 
"  Are  the  others  as  forlorn  ?  " 

"No.  Gerald  is  a  student,  and  Marianne's 
cousin,  who  lives  next  door.  He  's  jolly,  with 
yellow  hair,  and  means  to  be  a  doctor.  He 
loves  Violet,  even  if  she  is  poor.  He  has  a 
friend,  Eugene,  that  is  n't  well,  —  not  hectic  a 
bit,  but  has  trouble  with  his  eyes  or  something, 
so  he  can't  work,  and  comes  to  spend  the  sum 
mer  there,  and  falls  in  love  with  Marianne. 
They  all  have  great  times,  and  poor  Alessandro, 
in  bed  upstairs,  can  hear  all  their  fun,  when 
they  sit  on  the  piazza  in  the  moonlight,  and  he 
buries  his  head  in  the  pillows  and  sobs.  One 
night,  just  in  fun,  Marianne  makes  her  will  and 
leaves  all  she  has  to  Violet.  Then  Marianne 
and  Eugene  get  engaged.  Then  Marianne  dies 
of  a  fever,  and  they  find  the  will  and  accuse 
Violet  of  killing  her,  and  Eugene  is  so  sorrow 
ful  that  he  goes  into  a  convent." 

"  I  thought  men  usually  took  to  a  monastery. " 

"What's  the  difference?  Well,  they  have 
a  trial,  and  Gerald  stops  being  a  doctor  and 


88  TEDDY 

studies  law  and  makes  a  brilliant  plea  and  saves 
her.  Then,  right  in  the  court-room  before  them 
all,  he  presses  her  hand  to  his  lips  and  cries, 
'  Mine !  Mine  forever ! '  and  the  whole  room  full 
of  people  thunders  applause. " 

Theodora  paused.  Her  cheeks  were  glowing 
with  excitement.  Billy  had  turned  away  his 
head  and  his  arm  half  shielded  his  face. 

"  What  do  you  think  ?  "  she  demanded. 

"It's  great,"  he  answered,  with  an  odd 
huskiness  in  his  tone. 

"  You  really  like  it  ?  You  're  not  laughing 
at  me  ?  "  Her  tone  was  eager,  yet  mistrustful. 

Billy's  loyalty  asserted  itself.  He  took  down 
his  arm. 

"Honestly,  Ted,  it's  a  great  thing,"  he  said 
with  perfect  gravity.  "  It 's  different,  too ;  not 
just  like  all  the  others. " 

Theodora  drew  a  deep  sigh  of  relief  as  she 
nestled  back  in  the  chair. 

"  I  'm  so  glad  you  like  it,  Billy,  for  I  did 
want  you  to.  You  're  the  only  living  soul  I  've 
ever  told,  and  now,  if  you  don't  think  it 's  too 
bad,  I'm  going  right  to  work  on  it."  There 
was  still  a  little  note  of  question  in  her  voice. 

Billy  held  out  his  hand  to  her. 

"Do  you  know  what  I  honestly  think,  Teddy  ? 


HER  BOOK  89 


Some  day,  you  '11  get  there.  If  I  were  in  your 
place,  I  'd  go  right  to  work  on  this,  and  I  don't 
believe  you  '11  ever  be  sorry.  This  first  one 
may  not  be  the  success ;  but  I  'd  try  the  chance, 
and  keep  on  trying. " 

He  was  only  a  boy,  though  developed  and 
deepened  in  character  by  his  long  illness  until 
at  times  he  spoke  with  the  dignity  and  thought- 
fulness  of  a  man.  Now  his  words  rang  true, 
and  Theodora,  as  she  stood  beside  him  looking 
down  into  his  eyes,  was  satisfied;  and  as  she 
went  home  to  begin  her  great  undertaking,  she 
thanked  Providence,  as  she  had  so  often  done 
before  during  the  past  few  weeks,  for  bringing 
her  so  loyal  a  friend. 

It  was  with  a  feeling  of  elated  self-conscious 
ness  that  Theodora  took  her  place  in  the  family 
circle,  that  evening,  with  her  little  writing  tab 
let  in  her  hand.  As  she  seated  herself  near 
the  light,  she  cast  a  pitying  glance  at  her  fam 
ily  who  were  talking  of  trivial  details,  quite 
unconscious  of  the  fact  that  that  evening  would 
mark  an  epoch  in  the  literary  history  of  Amer 
ica.  They  were  used  to  her  and  to  her  tablet, 
and  beyond  the  slight  shifting  of  the  group 
needful  to  give  her  a  place  by  the  table,  she 
called  forth  no  comment  from  anvone  but  Phebe, 


90  TEDDY 

who,  bent  on  teasing,  turned  the  fire  of  her 
questions  upon  her  older  sister.  Mrs.  McAlis- 
ter  promptly  quieted  her  by  a  suggestion  of  bed 
time;  and  Theodora,  left  to  herself,  paused  to 
smile  in  anticipation  of  the  day  when,  book  in 
hand,  she  could  remind  them  all  of  that  even 
ing.  Then  she  launched  forth  into  a  descrip 
tion  of  the  swaying  figure  and  drooping  hair  of 
Violet,  too  eagerly  intent  upon  mustering  the 
forces  of  her  adjectives  to  heed  the  scratching  of 
her  own  pen,  or  the  conversation  of  the  others. 
Once  only  she  was  roused  from  her  writing  to 
hear  her  father  say,  as  he  entered  the  room,  — 

"Yes,  I've  just  been  over  there,  and  Will  is 
improving,  every  day.  I  can't  see  why  he  won't 
be  walking  a  little,  in  a  week  or  so.  I  hope  so, 
for  he  's  had  a  long  pull  of  it,  and  he  has  shown 
splendid  pluck." 

For  an  instant,  Theodora  was  conscious  of  a 
jealous  pang.  Once  on  his  feet  and  independ 
ent,  good-by  to  her  good  times  with  Billy. 
He  would  be  free  to  seek  boy  society  and  boy 
sports,  and  her  company  would  cease  to  interest 
him.  Angry  at  herself  for  her  selfishness,  yet 
conscious  of  a  vague  dissatisfaction  with  the 
future,  she  bent  still  closer  over  her  writing, 
while  her  stepmother  answered,  — 


HER  BOOK  91 


"Really,  Jack  ?  I  had  no  idea  of  it 's  coming 
so  soon.  Did  you  know  that  Jessie  has  asked 
us  all  to  eat  Thanksgiving  dinner  with  her  ?  " 

The  talk  strayed  on,  but  Theodora  had  lost 
herself  once  more.  She  had  finished  with  Vio 
let,  and  was  now  painting  the  horrors  of  the 
stormy  night  outside  the  house  where  the  two 
girls  sat  over  the  fire.  Like  most  girls  of  her 
age,  Theodora  had  a  natural  talent  for  melo 
drama,  and  she  revelled  in  her  description,  as 
her  pen  raced  over  the  paper.  Pausing  at  last 
to  decide  whether  lurid  or  murky  best  described 
the  night,  she  caught  Hope's  eyes  fixed  on  her 
steadily. 

"  What  is  it  ?  "  she  asked  abruptly. 

"  I  was  thinking  it  was  about  time  you  began 
to  put  up  your  hair,"  Hope  answered,  rising 
and  laying  her  hand  upon  Theodora's  heavy 
braids. 

The  transition  was  sudden  and  sharp.  Theo 
dora  had  been  feeling  as  if  she  trod  on  air. 
Now  the  clouds  seemed  to  part  and  let  her  drop 
into  the  common  clay.  She  shook  off  her  sis 
ter's  hand. 

"I  don't  want  to  put  up  my  hair,"  she  said 
sharply. 

"But  you  're  old  enough,  and  you  would  look 


92  TEDDY 

so  much  better.  Don't  you  think  so  ? "  Hope 
appealed  to  her  stepmother. 

"  I  don't  care  how  I  look.  I  want  to  be  com 
fortable. "  Theodora  threw  her  pen  down  on 
the  table. 

"But  you're  almost  a  young  lady,"  Hope 
urged,  with  a  quiet  persistency  which  exasper 
ated  Theodora.  "You  are  really  too  old  to 
wear  two  tails,  any  longer." 

"  I  don't  care  if  I  am !  "  Theodora  exclaimed 
hotly.  "It's  neat,  and  it's  comfortable,  and 
I  intend  to  wear  it  like  this  till  I  get  read} 
to  put  it  up.  You  can  take  care  of  your  own 
hair,  Hope  McAlister,  and  I  '11  take  care  of 
mine. " 

At  best,  Theodora  was  hot-tempered.  To 
night,  excited  by  her  attempt  at  writing  and 
tired  with  the  unwonted  effort,  she  flashed  like 
a  train  of  powder.  She  realized,  even  in  the 
midst  of  it,  that  her  annoyance  was  out  of  all 
proportion  to  the  cause.  Before  she  could  con 
trol  herself,  Hubert  gave  a  new  direction  to  her 
thoughts. 

"If  all  you're  after  is  comfort,  Teddy,"  he 
drawled;  "I'd  advise  you  to  get  a  hair-cut. 
It 's  much  the  most  comfortable  thing  you  can 
find." 


HER  BOOK  93 


For  the  moment,  Theodora  was  too  angry  to 
see  the  humor  of  his  suggestion. 

"  I  will, "  she  exclaimed.  "  Hope  Me Alister, 
if  you  say  another  word,  I  '11  have  my  hair  cut 
off." 

"Oh,  Teddy  dear!"  Hope's  hand  was  very 
gentle,  as  it  touched  her  hair.  "You  would  n't 
do  anything  so  crazy.  Just  see  how  pretty  I 
can  make  you  look." 

But  Theodora  jerked  herself  away,  rushed  out 
of  the  room  and  up  to  her  own  room. 

"I  won't!  I  won't!"  she  said  fiercely.  "I 
hate  Hope.  She  's  jealous  because  my  hair  is 
better  than  hers.  I  won't  put  it  up.  I  'd  rather 
cut  it  off,  myself,  short  off. " 

She  paused  to  listen.  Hope  was  coming  up 
the  stairs.  She  recognized  the  slow,  gentle 
footfall.  It  came  nearer  the  door.  Theodora 
took  a  quick  step  to  the  table  and  caught  up  the 
scissors  from  her  little  work-basket. 

"Come,  Teddy,  "Hope  called;  "don't  be  silly 
and  get  cross  about  a  little  thing  like  that. " 

Theodora  clashed  her  scissors  ominously. 
Even  in  her  anger,  there  came  a  sudden  won 
der  how  Marianne  would  meet  such  a  crisis, 
and  her  voice  took  a  higher,  more  incisive 
note,  as  she  said,  — 


94  TEDDY 

"  Hope,  unless  you  let  me  alone,  I  'm  going 
to  cut  it  off." 

"  But,  Teddy  —  " 

There  came  a  snip  and  a  long,  grinding  cut, 
followed  by  a  light  thud,  as  one  heavy  braid  fell 
to  the  floor.  Startled  at  what  she  had  done, 
Theodora  turned  to  the  mirror.  One  side  of 
her  head  was  covered  with  loose,  shaggy  locks 
standing  out  in  wild  disorder.  As  she  looked, 
she  grew  white  and  her  lips  quivered.  She 
hesitated  for  a  moment;  then,  shutting  her 
teeth,  she  sheared  away  the  other  braid.  For 
a  moment  longer,  she  stood  staring  at  the  white 
face  and  wide,  terrified  eyes  reflected  in  the 
mirror.  Then,  throwing  aside  the  scissors,  she 
cast  herself  down  on  her  bed  and  pulled  the  pil 
lows  over  her  head  to  smother  the  sound  of  her 
sobs. 


HER   BOOK  95 


CHAPTER  EIGHT 

MY  DEAR  TEDDY,  —  If  you  have  n't  entirely 
forsaken  us,  can't  you  come  over  and 
spend  the  afternoon  and  dine  here  ?  We  both  of 
us  miss  your  calls,  Will  especially,  since  he  has  n't 
been  so  well ;  and  we  can't  think  why  you  have 
turned  the  cold  shoulder  to  us.  I  wanted  to  send 
for  you,  yesterday ;  but  Will  would  n't  let  me,  for 
fear  you  had  something  else  to  do.  To-day,  I 
haven't  told  him,  so  he  won't  be  disappointed. 

Come  if  you  can,  dear,  and  stay  to  dinner  with 
us.     Will  is  so  blue  that  he  needs  you  to  brighten 
him  up,  now  he  is  on  his  back  again. 
Sincerely, 

JESSIE  FARRINGTON. 

This  was  the  note  which  Patrick  had  brought 
over,  that  morning,  and  which  Theodora  now 
sat  twisting  in  her  fingers,  while  she  anxiously 
wondered  what  it  all  meant.  She  had  not  heard 
that  Billy  was  worse,  and  it  was  a  week  since 
she  had  seen  him,  for  she  still  lacked  courage 
to  show  him  her  shorn  head.  She  dreaded  his 


96  TEDDY 

teasing ;  most  of  all  she  dreaded  the  questions 
he  must  inevitably  ask.  Her  own  family  was 
bad  enough;  she  felt  that  she  could  not  face 
him,  if  once  he  knew  the  secret  of  her  missing 
locks. 

Never  was  a  hasty,  hot-tempered  act  more 
thoroughly  punished  than  this.  There  had  been 
little  need  for  the  doctor  or  his  wife  to  add  a 
word.  Theodora's  sorrow  and  shame  were  in 
tense  ;  intense,  too,  was  her  power  of  self-abase 
ment.  For  a  week,  she  spent  most  of  the  time 
in  her  own  room,  as  if  she  feared  to  meet  the 
eyes  of  her  family;  and,  in  this  self-imposed 
isolation,  it  chanced  that  she  had  heard  no 
mention  of  the  Farringtons. 

It  had  taken  repeated  calls  to  bring  Theodora 
down  to  breakfast,  the  morning  after  her  out 
break.  In  all  her  after-life,  she  never  forgot 
the  exclamations  of  horror  and  surprise  which 
greeted  her  when  she  appeared,  half-defiant, 
half-sulky,  and  altogether  shamefaced.  For  a 
few  moments,  there  was  a  babel  of  comment; 
then  Mrs.  McAlister  rose  and  took  her  hand. 

"Theodora,  dear,"  she  said  gently;  "come 
into  my  room,  and  tell  me  all  about  it." 

The  door  closed  behind  them,  and  for  two 
hours  they  were  alone  together.  What  passed 


HER   BOOK  97 


between  them,  no  one  else  ever  knew.  When 
the  long  talk  was  ended,  and  Theodora,  clinging 
to  her  new  mother  just  as  she  had  been  wont  to 
cling  to  her  own  mother,  years  ago,  had  sobbed 
till  she  could  sob  no  more,  Mrs.  McAlister  left 
her  and  went  to  her  husband. 

"She's  punished  enough,  Jack,"  she  said  to 
him.  "  There  was  n't  much  need  for  me  to  say 
anything;  but  I  think  perhaps  this  has  given 
me  my  opportunity.  I  've  come  closer  to  the 
child  than  I  ever  dared  to  hope,  and,  with 
Heaven's  help,  I  mean  to  stay  there." 

Her  husband  bent  over  her. 

"You're  good  to  my  naughty  girl,  Bess,"  he 
said  gently. 

She  smiled ;  but  her  eyes  looked  heavy. 

"She  is  worth  it,  Jack.  At  heart,  she  is 
sweet  and  sound  as  a  girl  can  be.  It  is  only 
this  ungovernable  temper  of  hers.  She  is  quick 
and  impulsive ;  but  she  is  sorry  enough  now. 
I  think  she  won't  do  anything  like  this  again. 
And  I  have  promised  that  she  sha'n't  be  teased 
about  it,  and,  above  all,  that  no  one  shall  speak 
of  the  affair  to  the  Farringtons.  Can  you  see 
about  it,  Jack?  A  word  from  you  will  help  me 
in  this. " 

For  the  next  few  days,  a  spirit  of  heavy  quiet 

7 


98  TEDDY 

rested  on  the  McAlister  household.  As  a  rule, 
Theodora  was  the  life  of  the  house,  and  now 
that  she  moped  in  corners,  hiding  her  shorn 
head  as  best  she  could,  the  others  were  dull  and 
listless  in  sympathy. 

"I  hate  everybody,"  Phebe  said,  coming  into 
the  dining-room  where  Hope  was  arranging 
flowers,  one  morning. 

"Why,  Babe,  what's  the  matter?"  Hope 
looked  up  in  surprise. 

"  Nothing,  only  I  'm  lonesome. " 

"  Where  's  Allyn  ?  " 

"In  the  attic.  He  spoils  everything,  and  I 
don't  want  to  play  with  him.  Teddy  's  cross, 
and  Hu  won't  do  anything." 

There  was  a  silence,  while  Hope  filled  a  tall 
vase  with  late  chrysanthemums. 

"I  wish  I  were  a  flower,"  Phebe  said  mood 
ily;  "only  Allyn  would  tear  it  to  pieces.  I'd 
rather  be  a  vine;  that 's  tougher." 

"What  has  Allyn  done  ?  "  Hope  asked. 

"I  don't  tell  tales,  Hope  McAlister."  And 
Phebe  departed  with  her  chin  in  the  air,  leav 
ing  Hope  to  console  herself  for  the  rebuke  with 
the  reflection  that  Phebe's  code  of  honor,  in 
such  cases,  varied  according  to  her  own  share 
of  the  blame. 


HER  BOOK  99 


Half  an  hour  later,  Phebe  appeared  to  Billy, 
who  sat  in  an  easy-chair  before  a  crackling  fire 
in  the  library. 

"Hullo,  Phebe!"  he  exclaimed.  "How  you 
was  ?  " 

"  All  right.  I  thought  I  'd  come  over  and  see 
you,  a  while. " 

"  That 's  good.  You  don't  often  come.  Sit 
down,  won't  you  ?  "  He  waved  his  book  hospi 
tably  in  the  direction  of  a  chair.  "Where's 
Teddy  ?  She  has  n't  been  over  here  for  an 
age." 

"She's  —  busy."  Phebe  spoke  with  a  tone 
of  conscious  mystery. 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  "  Billy  turned  to  look 
at  his  guest  in  astonishment. 

"Oh  — nothing." 

"  What  is  the  matter  ?     Is  Teddy  sick  ?  " 

"  No ;  she  's  all  right. "  Phebe  gave  a  hostile 
sniff. 

"Then  why  does  n't  she  come  over  ?  " 

"I  s'pose  because  she  doesn't  want  to." 

"  Is  she  mad  about  anything  ?  " 

Phebe  shook  her  head  mockingly.  Then  she 
rose  and  stood  facing  him,  with  her  back  to  the 
fire. 

"It's  all  Teddy,  Teddy,   Teddy!"  she  said 


100  TEDDY 

complainingly.  "Nobody  takes  the  trouble  to 
talk  to  me,  and  you  're  just  as  bad  as  the  rest 
of  them.  You  need  n't  think  your  old  Teddy 
is  perfect,  for  she  isn't." 

"Maybe  not;  but  she  is  a  blamed  sight  better 
than  you  are, "  Billy  answered  more  bluntly  than 
courteously. 

"  Is  she  ?  "  Phebe  plunged  her  hand  into  her 
pocket.  "  What  do  you  think  of  this  ?  "  she 
demanded,  pulling  out  a  long  brown  pigtail  and 
brandishing  it  before  Billy's  astonished  eyes. 

"  What 's  that  ?  " 

"  Can't  you  tell  ?  You  've  seen  it  often 
enough. " 

"  Let  me  see. "     Billy  held  out  his  hand. 

"  Sha'n't.     It 's  Teddy's.     She  cut  it  off. " 

"I  don't  believe  it.  Let  me  take  it,  Babe." 
His  tone  was  commanding. 

For  her  only  answer,  Phebe  sprang  back  out 
of  his  reach,  caught  her  heel  in  the  rug  and 
fell.  Her  stiff  white  apron  lay  for  an  instant 
against  the  grate ;  the  next  moment,  it  blazed 
above  her  head. 

With  a  swift  exclamation,  Billy  struggled  to 
move,  to  go  to  her  assistance.  Again  and  again 
he  tried  to  wrench  himself  from  the  chair; 
then,  with  a  groan,  he  fell  back  and  blew  a 


;  \VlIAT    DO    YOU    THINK    OK    THIS?'    SIIK    DEMANDED.  " 

—  Page  100 


HER  BOOK  101 


long,  shrill  note  on  the  silver  whistle  which 
never  left  him. 

In  a  moment,  it  was  all  over.  Patrick  had 
rushed  in  and  wrapped  Phebe  in  a  rug.  Then, 
more  frightened  than  hurt,  the  child  had  started 
for  home,  concocting,  as  she  went,  a  plausible 
story  to  account  for  her  charred  apron.  The 
maid  came  in  to  put  the  room  to  rights,  and  no 
one  knew  but  Billy,  as  he  ordered  Patrick  to 
move  him  to  the  sofa,  that  the  sudden  strain 
had  done  his  invalid  back  a  lasting  injury. 
That  was  three  days  before,  and  now  Theodora 
sat  twisting  his  mother's  note  in  her  hands  and 
wondering  what  it  all  meant. 

The  doctor  was  away,  that  day,  and  Theodora 
was  too  proud  to  ask  the  others  any  questions. 
She  briefly  explained  to  her  mother  that  Mrs. 
Farrington  had  invited  her  to  spend  the  after 
noon  and  dine  there,  and,  putting  on  her  broad 
est  hat,  she  went  away  across  the  lawn. 

Patrick  admitted  her,  and,  even  in  the  mo 
mentary  glimpse  she  had  of  him,  she  saw  that 
he  looked  unusually  grave.  As  she  entered  the 
library,  however,  she  was  reassured,  for  the  room 
looked  just  as  usual,  with  Billy  lying  on  the 
familiar  lounge  by  the  fire.  It  seemed  so  good 
to  her  to  get  back  there,  after  her  self-imposed 


102  TEDDY 

banishment,  that,  forgetful  of  her  cropped  head, 
she  sprang  forward  to  his  side. 

"Oh,  Billy!" 

"  Have  you  really  come,  Ted  ?  I  began  to 
think  you  'd  cut  me.  Where  have  you  been  ?  " 

"  At  home.  But  what 's  the  matter,  Billy  ?  " 
For,  as  she  took  his  hand,  she  was  startled  at 
his  pallor  and  at  the  heavy  shadows  under  his 
eyes. 

"Only  this  set-back,"  he  answered.  "My 
back 's  given  out  again,  so  I  can't  move  a 
bit." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  When  was  it  ?  "  She 
dropped  down  beside  him,  and  rested  her  arm 
on  the  edge  of  the  lounge. 

"Did n't  you  know  it?" 

"No.     When  was  it?" 

"  How  queer  you  did  n't  know !  It  was  three 
days  ago.  I  strained  myself  somehow  or  other, 
and  it  kept  getting  worse,  till  it 's  about  as  bad 
as  it  was  at  first." 

"  Oh,  Billy !  "  Theodora's  overstrained  nerves 
were  giving  way.  After  her  outbreak,  after 
the  shame  which  had  followed  and  the  week 
when  she  had  missed  her  friend  daily  and 
hourly,  this  last  was  too  much.  After  all  her 
protestations  of  loyalty,  he  had  been  ill  and 


HER  BOOK  103 


suffering,  and  she  had  not  known  it,  nor  been 
near  him  at  all. 

"  And  you  have  to  lie  flat  on  your  back,  like 
this  ?  "  she  demanded  almost  fiercely. 

"Yes." 

"And  it  hurts?" 

"Yes." 

"  Much  ? " 

"  Some  —  yes,  a  good  deal. " 

"All  the  time?" 

He  nodded. 

"And  I  didn't  know  it,  and  you  wanted  to 
see  me,  and  I  never  came  near  you."  All  at 
once,  Theodora's  head  went  down  on  her  hands. 
"What  did  you  think,  Billy  ?  " 

"I  thought  you'd  got  sick  of  me,"  he  an 
swered  frankly.  "I  couldn't  see  any  other 
reason  you  should  go  back  on  me  just  now.  I 
did  miss  you  like  fury,  Ted." 

"  Why  did  n't  you  send  word  to  me  ?  " 

He  looked  up  at  her  with  an  odd  little  smile. 

"Wait  till  you  are  flat  on  your  back  and  no 
special  good,  and  you  '11  know  why. " 

His  smile  hurt  her.  She  laid  her  hand  on 
his  again. 

"  Did  you  think  that,  Billy,  really  and  truly  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  that  is,  sometimes,  but  I  don't  now. 
You  've  stuck  to  me  pretty  well,  Toddy." 


104  TEDDY 

"  Do  you  know  what  was  the  reason  I  did  n't 
come  ?  "  she  asked  impulsively. 

"No." 

"  It  was  this. "  She  pulled  off  her  hat  and  sat 
before  him,  a  strange,  forlorn-looking  Teddy, 
with  her  cropped  head  and  tear-stained  eyes. 

"Jove!" 

"Yes,  I  did  it,"  she  confessed  bluntly.  "I 
was  mad  at  Hope  and  cut  it  off." 

The  boy  lay  staring  at  her  in  surprise.  She 
drooped  her  head,  unable  to  meet  the  amused 
look  in  his  eyes. 

"  It 's  awful ;  is  n't  it  ?  "  she  asked. 

"Why,  no;  I  don't  think  it  is  so  bad,"  he 
said  consolingly.  "It  isn't  exactly  pretty,  and 
you  look  a  good  deal  like  a  boy.  When  I  get 
used  to  it,  though,  I  think  I  shall  rather  like  it. 
It  seems  to  suit  you,  somehow. " 

She  looked  up  gratefully. 

"  What  a  dear  old  fellow  you  are,  Billy ! 
That  was  the  reason  I  did  n't  come.  I  could  n't 
bear  to  have  you  see  me,  or  to  know  about  it, 
Now  I  don't  mind  anybody  else.  I  hated  to 
have  you  know  I  was  so  horrid." 

"You  are  peppery,  Teddy,  for  a  fact.  Don't 
get  in  a  tantrum  again,  or  you  will  cut  off  your 
nose  next,  and  that  won't  grow  again."  He 


HER   BOOK  105 


tried  to  laugh;  but  his  color  was  coming  and 
going,  and  Theodora  saw  that  he  was  suffering. 

She  sprang  up  and  stooped  to  arrange  the 
cushions  about  him. 

"  What  is  it  ? "  she  asked,  startled  at  his 
changing  color. 

"It's  the  old  pain.  It  won't  last  but  a 
minute. " 

"  What  does  papa  say  ?  "  she  asked,  when  he 
was  easier  again. 

"  Nothing,  except  that  it 's  a  strain  and  that 
I  must  keep  quiet." 

"  Plow  long  ?  " 

"  That 's  the  worst  of  it. "  There  was  an 
utter  dreariness  in  his  tone  which  Theodora 
had  never  heard  before.  "I  did  n't  mean  you 
to  know;  but  I  was  going  to  surprise  you  all 
by  walking  over  to  your  house,  Thanksgiving 
morning,  and  now—  "  he  hesitated,  and,  boy 
as  he  was  and  a  plucky  boy,  too,  two  great  tears 
came  and  splashed  down  on  Theodora's  fingers ; 
"  now  he  says  it  will  be  t\vo  or  three  weeks  be 
fore  I  can  even  sit  up  again. " 

That  night,  when  Theodora  rose  to  go  home, 
she  turned  back  to  the  lounge  once  more,  after 
she  had  said  good-by  to  Mrs.  Farrington. 

"You  must  come  in,  every  day,"  Mrs.   Far- 


106  TEDDY 

rington  said.  "  Will  is  better  already  for  your 
being  here." 

Theodora  herself  saw  the  change,  as  she  bent 
down  to  shake  hands.  He  looked  brighter  and 
better  than  when  she  had  come,  more  animated 
and  eager,  more  like  his  old  self. 

"Billy,"  she  said  steadily;  "I  want  you  to 
promise  me  something." 

"What's  that?" 

"That,  if  the  time  ever  comes  again  when 
you  want  me,  or  when  I  can  help  you,  you  '11 
send  for  me,  without  waiting.  I  'm  only  a  girl, 
I  know ;  but  I  'm  better  than  nothing,  and  I 
never  go  back  on  my  friends." 

Billy  smiled  up  at  her  benignly. 

"No,  Ted;  I  don't  believe  you  ever  do.  And 
there  are  times  when  '  only  a  girl '  is  about  as 
good  as  anything  you  can  find.  Come  again." 

"  I  will, "  she  answered. 

She  kept  her  word  so  well  that,  during  all 
Billy's  imprisonment,  she  never  failed  to  spend 
a  part  of  each  day  with  him.  It  did  her  good 
to  feel  that  some  one  counted  on  her  coming 
and  was  the  better  for  it.  It  made  her  steadier, 
more  reliable;  and,  in  the  long,  dreary  days 
that  followed,  she  gained  a  new  gentleness 
her  constant  association  with  her  suffer- 


HER  BOOK  107 


ing  friend.  There  were  days  when  he  was 
irritable  and  nervous,  days  when  he  was  de 
spondent,  days  when  he  was  too  weak  with 
pain  to  talk;  but,  during  all  this  time,  Theo 
dora  was  loyal  to  him,  soothing  him,  cheering 
him  up  and  bearing  his  ill-temper  with  a  gen 
tleness  which  surprised  even  herself,  minister 
ing  to  his  comfort  and  content  to  an  unmeasured 
degree,  and  at  the  same  time  gaining  a  quiet 
womanliness  which  she  had  never  known  be 
fore. 

And  the  days  passed  on,  and  the  youth  and 
the  maiden  reaped  from  them  all  a  harvest  of 
good,  a  mutual  gain  from  their  frank  intimacy. 


108  TEDDY 


CHAPTER  NINE 

"    A  ND  I  want   a   horsey,    and  a   wagon   to 

^**     hatchen  on  behind,"  Allyn  shouted. 

"  And  I  must  have  a  new  sled,  and  I  want  a 
set  of  furs  and  a  canary  bird, "  Phebe  clamored. 

"Is  that  all?"  Hubert  inquired  blandly. 
"  Why  not  ask  for  a  wedding  gown  and  a  pink 
elephant  while  you  are  about  it,  Babe  ?  Don't 
be  modest.  I  know  what  Teddy  is  going  to 
have." 

"  Oh,  what  ?  "  Theodora  looked  up  from  her 
game  of  euchre  with  Billy,  who,  promoted  to 
his  chair  again,  was  spending  the  evening  with 
the  McAlisters. 

"  She  'd  better  have  a  chunk  of  ice,  to  cool 
her  off  when  she  gets  mad,"  suggested  Phebe 
with  sudden  asperity,  as  she  thought  of  a  recent 
passage  at  arms  with  her  elder  sister. 

"Phebe!"  Mrs.  McAlistcr's  tone  was  omi 
nous,  and  Phebe  subsided,  grumbling,  while 
her  mother  rose  to  put  Allyn  to  bed. 


HER   BOOK  109 


Allyn  retreated  to  Hubert's  knee  and  pressed 
his  rosy  cheek  against  that  of  his  brother. 

"No,  mamma,"  he  urged.  "Can't  Phebe  be 
tendooed  first  ? " 

"Allynesque  for  attended  to,"  Theodora  ex 
plained  to  Billy,  while  her  mother  dislodged  the 
child  from  his  place  of  refuge  and  marched  him 
out  of  the  room.  "  But  does  it  seem  possible 
that  Christmas  comes,  next  week  ? " 

"  Well,  yes,  I  think  it  does.  This  year  has 
been  long  enough  to  make  over  into  a  dozen 
ordinary  ones.  Let 's  see,  when  is  Christmas  ?  " 

"  Why,  don't  you  know  ?  Christmas  is  our 
great  day  of  the  year,  and  we  count  the  days 
for  months  ahead.  This  year,  it  will  be  an 
extra  jolly  one,  for  we  want  to  show  mamma 
our  ways."  This  from  Hubert,  who  sat  with 
his  elbow  on  the  arm  of  Billy's  chair,  superin 
tending  his  play. 

"  What  do  you  do  ?  " 

"  Just  what  everybody  else  does,  1  suppose ; 
give  presents  and  make  a  row  generally." 

"Hubert,  what  will  Billy  think  of  us  ?  "  Hope 
interposed.  "It's  this  way:  mamma,  our  own 
mother,  always  said  that  Christmas  was  the 
day  when  we  all  should  be  children  together, 
and  play  plays  and  have  a  grand  frolic.  Years 


HO  TEDDY 

ago,  when  Hu  and  Teddy  and  I  were  little  bits 
of  children,  we  began  having  our  basket,  and 
we  have  kept  it  up  ever  since." 

"We  do  all  the  things,  jokes  and  presents 
and  all,  in  bundles,"  Theodora  said,  taking  up 
the  story  in  her  eagerness ;  "  and  we  put  them 
all  in  this  basket.  It  is  an  old  clothes-basket, 
large  as  the  house  and  broken,  but  we  never 
change  it.  And  then  we  draw  them  out,  one 
at  a  time." 

"  It 's  covered,  you  know,  and  we  just  fish 
under  the  cover,  so  as  not  to  see  what  comes. 
They  used  to  begin  with  me ;  but  Allyn  is  the 
baby,  and  has  the  first  chance  now."  In  her 
interest,  Phebe  quite  forgot  to  resent  it  when 
Theodora  pulled  her  down  into  her  lap. 

Billy  sat  looking  from  one  to  another  of  the 
group,  wondering  to  see  the  faces  brighten  and 
grow  eager  as  the  talk  ran  on. 

"It  sounds  good  fun,"  he  said  rather  wish 
fully,  as  soon  as  there  was  a  pause.  "I  sup 
pose  it 's  because  there  are  such  a  lot  of  you. " 
"The  more  the  better,  of  course,"  Hope 
said.  "  We  always  have  Susan  and  James  come 
in  to  look  on,  and  even  Mulvaney  has  his  new 
ribbon  and  a  bone.  He  has  learned  to  know 
the  basket,  and  he  lies  down  beside  it  as  soon 
as  it,  is  brought  in  to  be  filled." 


HER  BOOK 


"  When  do  you  do  it  ?  " 

"Christmas  eve,"  Hubert  answered.  "We 
never  could  stand  it  till  Christmas  day.  We 
always  rush  through  supper,  Christmas  eve,  to 
be  ready  as  soon  as  we  can.  You  should  see 
our  house  when  we  get  everything  out  of  the 
basket." 

"I  wish  I  could." 

"  What  do  you  do  ?  "  Phebe  demanded. 

"Why,  we  give  presents  at  breakfast;  that's 
all.  Of  course  it  will  be  different,  this  year. 
Papa  was  here,  last  Christmas.  He  gave  me 
my  watch  then." 

"  Oh ! "  Phebe  became  round-eyed  with  ad 
miration.  "Did  he  give  you  that?  I  should 
think  you  would  miss  him." 

Hope  came  to  the  rescue. 

"It  will  be  lonely,  this  year.  I  remember 
how  it  was,  after  mamma  died.  We  did  n't 
want  to  have  any  Christinas;  but  papa  said  she 
would  rather  we  kept  up  the  old  ways,  so  we 
did  just  as  we  always  had  done." 

"I  wish  we  did  things  the  way  you  do." 
Billy  pushed  his  hair  impatiently  away  from 
his  face.  "You  don't  know  how  it  seems  to  a 
fellow  to  be  alone.  It  is  no  sort  of  fun. " 

"Adopt  us,"  Theodora  suggested,  laughing. 


112  TEDDY 

Billy  flashed  at  her  a  swift  glance  which  told, 
plainly  as  words,  how  gladly  he  would  carry  out 
her  suggestion. 

Passing  through  the  hall,  Mrs.  McAlister  had 
heard  the  children's  talk.  A  little  later,  she 
knocked  at  the  door  of  her  husband's  office. 
The  doctor  pushed  aside  the  sheets  of  the  essay 
he  was  writing  for  a  medical  journal,  and  rose 
to  greet  his  wife. 

"Well,  Bess,  the  sanctum  is  glad  to  see 
you." 

"  Am  I  interrupting  ?  "  she  asked,  as  she  sat 
down  by  the  table. 

"  Not  a  bit.     You  never  do. " 

"  So  glad,  for  I  want  to  talk,  Jack. " 

"  What  now  ?  Is  Phebe  in  mischief,  or  is 
Teddy  proving  obstreperous  ?  " 

"Neither;  it's  only  this."  And  she  repeated 
the  substance  of  the  children's  conversation. 
"Now  are  you  ready  to  do  some  missionary 
work,  Jack  ?  " 

"  Of  course ;  anything  you  like.     What  is  it  ?  " 

"  May  Jessie  and  Will  come  to  your  Christ 
mas  eve  ?  " 

"  Ours, "  he  corrected  gently. 

"No.  yours.  You  know  I  've  never  been  here 
for  it,  and  it  is  all  new  to  me.  I  don't  want 


HER   BOOK 


to  crowd  your  good  time;  but  the  boy  is  so 
lonely." 

"Have  him,  of  course.  The  Savins  is  large 
enough  to  hold  a  few  more,  and  he  needs  all 
the  fun  he  can  get,"  the  doctor  said  heartily. 
"There's  only  one  thing  I  am  afraid  of." 

His  wife  looked  up  quickly. 

"I  thought  that  all  over  before  I  came  to 
you,  Jack;  but  I  have  known  Jessie  longer 
than  you  have,  and  I  know  she  won't  misun 
derstand  us.  She  knows  we  can't  give  expen 
sive  presents,  and  she  will  care,  as  we  do,  for 
the  fun  and  the  Christmas  spirit.  I  know  she 
will  be  glad  to  come,  if  only  for  Billy's  sake." 

But  Mrs.  Farrington  demurred  a  little,  the 
next  day,  when  the  plan  was  suggested  to  her. 

"I  have  just  promised  Will  to  have  you  all 
over  here,"  she  said.  "Still,  if  you  all  will 
promise  to  come  here  for  Christmas  dinner  and 
a  bran  pie  afterwards,  Billy  and  I  will  come  to 
your  basket.  We  are  so  lonely  that  it  is  a 
deed  of  charity  to  take  us  in." 

For  the  next  week,  mystery  lurked  in  every 
corner  of  the  McAlister  house.  With  three 
novices  to  be  trained  in  their  Christmas  rite, 
Hope  and  Theodora  and  Hubert  felt  that  this 
basket  must  surpass  all  those  of  previous  years. 


114  TEDDY 

and  they  ransacked  their  brains,  their  house, 
and  the  shops  for  the  jokes  and  nonsensical 
offerings  which  added  spice  to  their  simple 
presents.  If  the  Christmas  spirit  of  happiness 
and  good-will  were  the  true  test,  the  McAlis- 
ters  lived  up  to  the  full  tradition  of  the  day. 
Gifts  simple  and  elaborate,  hoary  jokes  and 
brand-new  ones,  quips  and  cranks  of  every 
description,  were  enclosed  in  the  bundles  which 
went  into  the  shabby  old  basket,  and  the  only 
clue  to  the  possible  contents  of  the  bundles  lay 
in  the  fact  that,  the  older  the  joke,  the  more 
fresh  and  dainty  was  its  outward  disguise. 

The  basket  stood  in  a  deep  bay-window;  be 
side  it  on  an  easel  was  the  portrait  of  the  chil 
dren's  own  mother,  placed  there  and  wreathed 
in  Christmas  greens  by  Mrs.  McAlistcr's  own 
hands.  Old  Susan  had  told  her  that  it  had 
stood  there  in  past  years,  and,  that  afternoon, 
the  doctor  had  come  in,  to  find  her  bending 
over  to  wreathe  it  with  holly  and  trailing 
pine. 

"It's  like  you,  Bess,"  he  said.  "The  chil 
dren  will  be  so  happy.  They  felt  that  Christ 
mas  would  n't  be  Christmas  without  this." 

Supper  was  a  hurried  meal  that  night,  and 
it  was  still  early  when  they  gathered  in  the 


HER  BOOK  H5 


parlor,  with  Mulvaney  beside  the  basket  and 
Susan  in  the  doorway,  to  wait  for  thoir  guests. 

" Oh,  I  can't  wait,"  Phebe  wailed.  " I  know 
such  lots  of  things  in  there.  I  put  in  four 
bundles  for  Hu,  and  seven  for  Allyn,  and  two 
for  papa,  only  one 's  broken,  and  two  for 
Teddy." 

"Let  me  see."  Hubert  counted  on  his  fin 
gers.  "I  put  in  six  for  Ted,  no,  seven,  and 
four  for  Hope,  and  nine  for  Allyn." 

"And  me  ?  "     Phebe  pranced  impatiently. 

"Oh,  Babe,  I  forgot  you." 

"Hush,  Babe;  there's  Billy's  chair,"  Hope 
said,  endeavoring  to  suppress  her  young  sister. 

"Did  you  know  Patrick  brought  over  a 
bundle,  Hu  ?  "  Theodora  whispered.  "  I  saw 
mamma  slying  it  into  the  house.  'Twas  a  big 
one,  too." 

"  Really  ?  "  Hubert  tried  to  look  as  innocent 
as  if  Billy  had  not  consulted  him  about  Theo 
dora's  Christmas  gift. 

"  Yes,  I  'm  so  glad  now  that  I  hemstitched 
that  handkerchief.  It  is  fairly  covered  with 
my  gore  where  I  pricked  myself;  but  he  won't 
be  critical,  I  hope." 

The  babel  of  greeting  and  chatter  was  hushed, 
as  Hope  took  her  seat  at  the  piano  and  the  chil 


116  TEDDY 

dren  gathered  around  her  to  sing  their  favorite 
carol.  The  last  note  had  scarcely  died  away 
when  Allyn,  at  a  signal  from  Hubert,  gave  a 
joyous  shriek  and  plunged  upon  the  basket. 

"One  at  a  time,"  Hope  cautioned  him;  "and 
bring  the  bundle  to  sister,  so  she  can  read  the 
writing  on  it. " 

The  first  package  chanced  to  contain  his 
much-desired  horsey,  and  he  retired  to  a  cor 
ner  to  embrace  it,  while  Phebe  and  then  Theo 
dora  took  their  turns  at  drawing. 

"Draw  for  me,  please,"  Billy  asked  Theo 
dora,  when  his  turn  came. 

"  Not  a  bit  of  it.  You  must  do  your  part. " 
And  she  had  whisked  him  across  the  room  and 
landed  him  beside  the  basket,  before  he  could 
realize  her  intention. 

For  two  hours,  the  fun  was  fast  and  furious. 
Mulvaney,  on  the  floor  in  a  nest  of  papers,  was 
wrestling  with  a  vast  bone,  Mrs.  Farrington 
was  admiring  a  bit  of  Hope's  dainty  handi 
work,  and  Hubert  was  trying  hard  to  realize 
that  at  last  he  was  the  proud  owner  of  a  watch. 
Everyone  was  happy,  and  Hope  and  Theodora 
congratulated  themselves  upon  the  success  of 
their  Christmas  frolic. 

"It 's  your  turn  to  draw,  Billy."     And  Theo- 


HER  BOOK  H7 


dora  rolled  him  across  the  floor  to  the  fast- 
emptying  basket. 

"Bah!  I  can't  reach  it.  Get  the  one  in  the 
corner,  Ted.  It 's  a  big  square  one." 

"  Is  this  it  ?  " 

"Yes."     Billy  took    it   and  read  the  label 
Theodora,   ivith  love  from  Babe. 

"  Why,  Babe  dear,  you  gave  me  the  gloves. " 

Phebe  flushed. 

"It's  probably  some  grind  on  you,  Teddy,' 
Hubert  suggested,  as  his  sister  tore  away  the 
wrappers. 

Inside  was  a  box,  then  another.  Phebe 
smiled  in  conscious  satisfaction,  while  Theo 
dora  opened  one  layer  after  another  of  the 
papers  within  and  at  last  drew  out  a  long  flexi 
ble  bundle. 

"Phebe,  you  dear,  it  is  the  new  belt  I've 
been  wanting,"  she  said. 

Phebe  began  to  look  rather  uneasy. 

"Wait  and  see,"  she  advised.  "II  may  not 
be  as  nice  as  you  think  it 's  going  to  bo." 

With  eager  hands,  Theodora  unrolled  the 
tissue  papers,  while  the  others  gathered  round 
to  see  what  was  inside.  Then  there  came  a 
sudden  hush  of  surprise  and  c«isternation. 
Out  from  the  papers  had  slipped  A  long,  soft 


118  TEDDY 

braid  of  brown  hair,  and,  with  a  startled  sob, 
Theodora  had  buried  her  face  in  her  hands. 
The  next  instant,  Hubert's  hand  descended  on 
Phebe's  cheek  with  a  ringing  blow. 

For  a  few  moments,  it  seemed  that  the  even 
ing  was  to  end  in  dismal  failure.  Then  Mrs. 
Farrington,  with  her  arm  about  Theodora's 
waist,  marched  her  across  the  room  to  the 
basket  to  renew  the  drawing,  and  soon  the  lit 
tle  incident  was  apparently  forgotten.  Later, 
when  the  merriment  was  subsiding,  Mrs.  Far 
rington  missed  Theodora  and  went  in  search  of 
her.  She  found  her  in  the  library,  standing 
alone  before  the  open  fire. 

"It  was  too  bad,  dear,"  Mrs.  Farrington  said. 
"Phebe  didn't  realize  what  she  was  doing,  of 
course;  but  it  was  hard  for  you.  But  I  Avant 
to  thank  you  for  the  pleasant  evening  arid  for 
the  pleasant  months  Billy  has  had  with  you. 
This  little  package  was  to  go  in  the  pie,  to 
morrow  ;  but  I  wanted  instead  to  give  it  to  you 
when  we  were  alone,  so  I  could  say  to  you  how 
I  appreciate  all  you  have  done  for  my  boy. " 

And  Theodora,  as  she  looked  at  the  little 
sapphire  on  her  finger,  felt  that  not  all  the 
Phebes  in  creation  could  spoil  her  merry 
Christmas. 


HER  BOOK  H9 


A  week  later,  she  went  racing  across  the  lawn 
to  the  Farringtons',  with  a  long  brown  bundle 
over  her  shoulder. 

"Let  rne  in  quick,  Patrick,"  she  cried,  as  she 
dashed  through  the  door.  "  Happy  New  Year, 
Billy  !  I  've  brought  you  a  New  Year's  present. 
I  said  I  must  be  the  one  to  bring  it,  and  papa  is 
coming  over  in  a  few  minutes  to  teach  you  to 
use  it."  And,  with  a  clatter  and  a  bang,  she 
cast  a  pair  of  crutches  on  the  floor  at  Billy's 
feet. 


120  TEDDY 


CHAPTER  TEN 

BILLY  sat  in  his  chair  before  the  McAlis. 
ters'  front  steps.  Theodora  sat  beside 
him  on  the  steps,  with  her  chin  in  her  hands. 
Though  it  was  late  in  January,  the  midday  sun 
was  warm  around  them,  and  they  were  basking 
in  it  like  two  young  turtles. 

"I  know,"  Theodora  was  saying  restively; 
"but  I  want  to  do  something  really  and  truly 
useful,  something  that  will  help  on  the  world. 
Here  I  am,  sixteen  years  old,  and  I  've  never 
been  of  the  least  use  to  anybody." 

"How  about  me?"  Billy  suggested,  luxuri 
ously  stretching  and  then  clasping  his  hands  at 
the  back  of  his  head. 

"  You  ?     Oh,  you  don't  count. " 

"Thanks." 

Theodora  sprang  up  and  whirled  the  chair  to 
the  gate  and  back  again  to  the  steps. 

"  What  a  tease  you  are,  Billy  !  Next  time,  if 
you  don't  behave,  I  '11  tip  you  out.  You  know 
what  I  mean.  I  get  just  as  much  fun  out  of 


HER  BOOK  121 


this  as  you  do.  What  I  want  is  to  help  on  the 
masses." 

"  Rats ! "  Billy  remarked  profanely. 

"Not  rats  at  all.  You  don't  need  me;  they 
do." 

"  So  do  I.     Who  takes  me  all  over  town  ?  " 

"  That 's  selfish,  Billy.  They  need  me  more 
than  you  do,  then." 

"No,  they  don't  either.     Who  'd  take  me  ?  " 

"  Patrick.  Besides,  you  '11  take  yourself 
soon,  and  then  you  won't  want  me  any 
more. " 

There  was  a  little  involuntary  note  of  sad 
ness  in  her  tone,  and  Billy  smiled  to  himself, 
as  he  shifted  his  position  to  face  her. 

"  What  's  started  you  to  talking  all  this 
flummery,  Ted  ? "  he  asked  bluntly,  heedless, 
in  true  boy  fashion,  of  the  vague  aspirations 
and  aims  of  sweet  sixteen.  "I  thought  you 
had  too  good  sense  to  get  sentimental." 

The  word  stung  Theodora,  and  she  started 
up  abruptly. 

"Let 's  go  to  the  shore,"  she  said  shortly. 

"Aren't  you  too  tired?  I  am  growing  fat 
and  heavy,  you  know." 

For  a  week,  now,  Billy  had  been  installed  at 
the  doctor's,  while  his  mother  had  been  called 


122  TEDDY 

away  by  the  illness  of  her  only  brother.  The 
arrangement  suited  them  all,  Billy  and  Theo 
dora  even  more  than  the  others.  The  two 
friends  never  seemed  to  weary  of  the  long  hours 
they  spent  together,  never  appeared  to  be  at  a 
loss  for  subjects  of  conversation.  For  the  most 
part,  Hubert  was  with  them;  but  there  were 
times,  like  the  present,  when  his  other  friends 
demanded  his  whole  attention,  and  Billy  and 
Theodora  were  left  to  each  other's  society. 
Hope  was  absorbed  in  other  interests,  though 
she  was  always  kind  and  considerate  of  their 
guest;  and,  by  a  tacit  consent,  Phebe's  company 
was  shunned  rather  than  courted. 

The  winter  had  been  good  to  Billy.  Day  by 
day,  his  strength  was  coming  back  to  him, 
slowly  and  by  almost  imperceptible  stages,  it 
is  true;  but  by  looking  back  from  month  to 
month,  they  could  see  his  steady  progress.  In 
his  better  days,  he  could  walk  about  the  rooms 
now,  and  even  this  slight  advance  had  put  fresh 
life  into  him. 

"  Some  day,  I  may  begin  to  have  a  little  re 
spect  for  myself  again,"  he  had  said  to  Hubert, 
the  day  after  his  first  expedition  across  the 
library.  "I  've  been  like  a  rag  doll  for  so  long 
that  I  began  to  think  I  'd  never  stir  alone  any 


HER  BOOK  123 


more.  Now  it  looks  more  as  if  I  might  be 
somebody  in  time,  and  I  can  wait." 

"  Strikes  me  you  've  been  waiting  about  long 
enough,"  Hubert  returned  impatiently.  "I 
wish  you  'd  hurry  up  and  come  to  life.  There  's 
fun  enough  to  be  had,  as  soon  as  you  're  on  your 
legs  again." 

"  I  should  think  it  would  seem  queer  to  you 
to  see  me  walking,"  Billy  observed  reflectively. 

"It  does.  I  can't  make  it  seem  a  part  of 
you,  somehow,  I  'm  so  used  to  the  chair,"  Theo 
dora  said,  as  she  joined  the  group.  "After  all, 
Billy,  I  think  I  shall  miss  it  a  little." 

Well  she  might,  for  by  this  time  the  chair 
had  become  a  part  of  her  life.  Leaving  Patrick 
to  his  own  devices,  the  two  young  people  had 
explored  the  town,  wandering  here  and  there 
as  Billy's  curiosity  or  Theodora's  whim  took 
them.  There  were  days  when  Billy  was  too 
weak  for  his  ride,  there  were  days  when  Theo 
dora  was  too  busy  with  other  things  to  take 
him  out  during  the  warmer  part  of  the  day; 
but,  as  a  rule,  three  or  four  times  a  week  they 
wandered  away  in  search  of  fresh  scenes  and  an 
occasional  adventure. 

"  By  the  way,  Ted,  how  comes  on  the  story  ?  " 
Billy  asked,  as  they  drew  near  the  steps  once 


124  TEDDY 

more  and  Mulvaney  came  forward  to  meet 
them. 

"  Seventeen  chapters  are  done,"  she  answered, 
slackening  her  pace  a  little. 

"  Moses !    How  many  do  you  expect  to  have  ?  " 

"I  don't  know.  They  seem  to  count  up 
awfully  fast.  I  've  only  just  come  to  the  first 
of  the  lovering.  I  can't  seem  to  make  much 
of  that.  I  do  wish  I  knew  how  people  make 
love." 

"Perhaps  you'll  find  out,  some  day,"  Billy 
suggested. 

But  Theodora  frowned  on  him. 

"Don't  be  silly.  I  'm  not  that  kind,  nor  you 
either.  I  wish  you  could  help  me  out  on  it. 
Don't  people  ever  — 

"  Collaborate  ?  Yes.  When  are  you  going 
to  read  it  to  me  ? " 

"  Do  you  really  want  it  ?  " 

"Yes." 

"  Well,  to-night,  perhaps,  if  we  can  get  away 
by  ourselves." 

However,  fate  willed  otherwise. 

"Theodora,"  the  doctor  said,  as  they  were 
leaving  the  dinner-table,  that  day;  "there's 
an  errand  I  'd  like  you  to  do  for  me,  about 
four  o'clock.  I  promised  to  send  some  rnedi- 


HER  BOOK  125 


cine  down  to  a  house  in  Water  Street  for  a 
sick  baby.  Can  you  take  it  down  ?  It 's  noth 
ing  catching,"  he  added  reassuringly  to  his 
wife. 

"I'll  go.     Can  I  take  Billy?" 

"  Better  not.  It 's  a  wretched  region  for 
wheels,  and  you  might  have  an  upset,"  the  doc 
tor  advised.  "  Come  to  the  office,  soon  after 
four,  and  I  '11  have  it  ready.  You  're  getting 
to  be  your  father's  right-hand  man,  Teddy." 
And  he  rested  his  hand  affectionately  on  her 
shoulder  before  he  left  the  room. 

A  month  before  that  time,  Mrs.  Farrington 
had  received  a  visit  from  an  old  college  friend, 
one  of  the  energetic  workers  in  the  university 
settlements,  and  her  stories  of  life  in  the  slums 
had  made  a  strong  impression  upon  Theodora's 
mind.  For  the  time  being,  other  interests  lost 
their  charm.  Theodora  was  content  to  sit  by 
the  hour  and  listen  to  the  experiences  so  re 
mote  from  her  own  sheltered  life.  She  was  as 
impressionable  as  most  girls  of  her  age;  more 
than  most  girls,  she  retained  her  impressions, 
dwelling  upon  them  and  magnifying  them  until 
they  seemed  to  become  less  a  day-dream  than  a 
part  of  her  actual  experience. 

For  the  past  three  weeks,  she  had  been  filled 


126  TEDDY 

with  vague,  restless  longings  to  have  a  share 
in  the  vast  work  of  social  reform ;  most  of  all, 
her  warm  young  heart  turned  to  the  neglected 
children.  It  was  the  same  impulse  of  protec 
tion  which  had  first  roused  her  interest  in  Billy 
Farrington,  the  helpless  invalid ;  and  now,  had 
Billy  been  a  less  well-tried  friend,  he  might 
have  found  himself  forsaken  to  make  room  for 
this  new  hobby  of  Theodora.  As  it  was,  she 
merely  used  him  for  a  safety-valve,  and  poured 
into  his  ears  mysterious  hints  of  the  career  for 
which  she  was  temporarily  yearning. 

The    medicine   was   delivered,    and,    in   the 
gathering   dusk,    Theodora's    face    was   turned 

O  O  7 

towards  home.  It  was  a  part  of  the  town  into 
which  she  rarely  penetrated,  —  a  network  of 
squalid  streets  near  the  water  front;  and,  a 
month  ago,  she  would  have  swept  through  them 
with  her  nose  in  the  air.  Now,  however,  she 
looked  to  the  left  and  the  right,  as  she  walked 
onward,  hoping  almost  against  hope  that  her 
secret  prayers  would  be  answered,  and  that, 
even  in  this  hasty  progress,  she  might  see  some 
work  ready  for  her  hand.  Providence,  always 
kind,  was  in  a  benign  mood,  and  her  desire 
was  fulfilled  with  unexpected  promptness. 
Down  the  street  towards  her  came  a  forlorn 


HER  BOOK  127 


little  figure.  It  was  a  child  of  nine,  a  girl 
whose  grimy  face  was  streaked  and  swollen 
with  tears,  whose  red  hood  was  faded  to  a  dull 
yellowish  shade,  whose  coarse  gray  coat  was  so 
many  sizes  too  large  for  her  that  the  sleeves 
were  folded  back  to  allow  her  blue,  chapped 
hands  to  come  forth  to  the  light  of  day  and  to 
their  destined  usefulness.  Theodora's  heart 
gave  a  quick  bound,  and,  stepping  forward,  she 
bent  over  the  wailing  child. 

"  What  is  the  matter  ?  "  she  asked. 

The  child  stopped  sobbing  and  blinked  up  at 
her,  disclosing  a  face  of  unmistakably  Keltic 
ancestry. 

"  What  is  the  matter  ?  "  Theodora  repeated. 

"Huh?" 

Theodora  experienced  a  momentary  shock. 
Not  thus  had  her  dreamed-of  foundlings  an 
swered  to  her  imaginary  queries.  She  rallied 
and  reiterated  her  question.  The  child's  tears 
fell  again. 

"I'm  —  I'm  losted,  and  I'm  tired  and  so 
hungry. " 

Even  in  this  woful  climax,  Theodora  noted 
the  gurgle  of  the  child's  sobs.  She  told  her 
self  that  it  was  like  water  bubbling  from  a 
bottle,  a  large  earthen  bottle.  Then  she  re- 


128  TEDDY 

proached  herself  for  her  misplaced  sense  of 
humor. 

There  followed  a  little  question,  a  little  an 
swer,  a  little  consolation.  Then,  before  she 
quite  realized  what  she  was  doing,  Theodora 
was  walking  rapidly  towards  home,  with  broth 
erly  love  swelling  in  her  heart,  and  the  child's 
smutty  hand  clasped  in  her  woollen  mitten. 
She  had  delayed  longer  than  she  knew,  the 
walk  home  was  long,  and  before  she  reached 
there,  the  twilight  had  quite  fallen,  the  house 
was  brightly  lighted,  and  the  family  were  gath 
ered  in  the  dining-room. 

"  Dear  me,  they  're  all  at  supper ! "  she  said 
to  herself,  as  she  went  up  the  steps.  "Never 
mind,  little  girl,"  she  added,  with  a  conscious 
patronage  which  not  even  her  sympathy  could 
keep  down.  "  They  're  having  their  supper 
now.  I  '11  take  you  up  to  my  room,  and,  as 
soon  as  they  're  through,  I  '11  give  you  some 
thing  to  eat." 

Her  feminine  intuition  told  her  that  the 
child's  welcome  would  not  be  so  warm  if  she 
were  presented  at  the  supper-table.  For  a  mo 
ment,  she  hesitated  what  disposition  to  make 
of  her  charge.  Then,  herself  hungry  and  eager 
to  get  to  the  table  and  tell  the  story  of  her 


TKDDY,  DEAK.  THIS   is  MY  HIJOTIIKK   AKCIIIE,  COME 
AT  LAST."  —  Paqe  129. 


HER  BOOK  129 


adventure,  she  led  the  way  to  her  room  and 
popped  the  child  into  her  own  dainty  bed. 

Mrs.  McAlister  looked  up  as  Theodora  en 
tered  the  room. 

"You  are  late,  Teddy,  and  I  was  just  get 
ting  anxious  about  you.  Archie,  this  is  my 
twin  daughter,  Theodora.  Teddy  dear,  this  is 
my  dear  brother  Archie,  come  at  last. "  There 
was  an  exultant  note  in  Mrs.  McAlister's  voice 
which  Theodora  had  never  heard  before. 

Theodora  gave  a  quick  glance  at  the  stranger 
who  sat  between  her  stepmother  and  Hope, 
and  the  first  look  told  her  that  she  had  found  a 
friend,  one  who  would  be  true  and  loyal  as  a 
man  could  be.  There  was  nothing  especially 
distinctive  about  Archie  Holden.  He  was  tall 
and  blond  and  athletic,  sufficiently  good-look 
ing,  and  with  easy,  off-hand  manners.  But  his 
keen  blue  eyes,  the  curve  of  his  little  blond 
mustache,  above  all,  the  grip  of  his  hand  and 
the  ring  of  his  voice  suited  Theodora,  and,  long 
before  supper  was  over,  she  had  forgotten  her 
protegee  in  the  excitement  of  the  unexpected 
addition  to  their  family  circle.  It  was  fortu 
nate,  perhaps,  that  the  child,  more  tired  than 
hungry,  had  fallen  asleep  in  the  midst  of  Theo 
dora's  soft  white  bed. 


130  TEDDY 

As  they  were  leaving  the  table,  Mrs.  McAlis- 
ter  laid  a  detaining  hand  on  Theodora's  arm. 

"  Teddy,  I  've  had  to  put  Archie  into  your 
room,  to-night.  Can  you  sleep  in  the  little 
back  chamber  ?  I  am  sorry  to  turn  you  out, 
but  Billy  has  the  spare  room,  and  I  didn't  like 
to  put  Archie  with  him.  Do  you  mind,  dear  ? 
It 's  only  for  one  night ;  then  we  can  make 
some  other  arrangement." 

"I  don't  care  at  all,"  Theodora  answered 
readily.  "It  would  n't  do  to  put  him  in  with 
Billy.  When  did  Mr.  Holden  come  ?  " 

"  At  five.  It  was  such  a  surprise,  too.  You 
know  we  did  n't  expect  him  for  a  week ;  but  the 
heavy  snow  sent  the  party  in,  and  he  is  to  have 
a  vacation  till  the  middle  of  March.  What 
do  you  think  of  my  little  brother,  Teddy  ?  " 

"  I  think  he  's  splendid,"  Theodora  replied  so 
emphatically  that  her  mother  smiled. 

"Run  along  after  him,  then,"  she  said.  "I 
want  you  and  Hope  to  see  that  his  visit  is  a 
good  one.  Hope  took  your  things  into  the  back 
room,  Teddy,  so  you  '11  find  everything  ready 
for  you  at  bedtime." 

To  Theodora's  eager  young  mind,  it  seemed 
that  the  evening  was  the  shortest  she  had  ever 
spent,  and,  when  ten  o'clock  struck,  she  was 


HER   BOOK  131 


still  sitting  perched  on  the  arm  of  Hope's  chair, 
while  she  listened  to  Archie's  stirring  tales  of 
life  in  camp  and  field,  in  mountain  and  canon 
and  desert.  Then  there  was  an  interruption, 
for  the  bell  rang  and  a  voice  was  heard  asking 
for  the  doctor.  Archie  rose. 

"Another  patient,  doctor  ?  I  believe  I  '11  go 
to  bed.  Three  nights  in  a  sleeper  are  too  much 
for  me.  No,  don't  come  with  me,  Bess ;  I  know 
the  way  perfectly. " 

However,  Mrs.  McAlister  went  to  his  door 
with  him.  As  she  came  downstairs,  her  hus 
band  met  her  in  the  hall. 

"I  don't  quite  comprehend  this  mystery, 
Bess,"  he  said,  while  an  anxious  frown  puck 
ered  his  brows.  "  There  's  a  policeman  here 
that  accuses  me  of  having  abducted  a  child. 
There 's  one  missing  from  Water  Street,  it 
seems,  and  he  claims  that  she  is  here  in  this 
house. " 

"  What  ? " 

'"Tis  a  remarkable  story.  I  can't  seem  to 
get  at  the  bottom  of  it.  He  does  n't  know  me ; 
and  he  says  his  orders  are  not  to  go  away 
without  the  child.  I  can't  convince  him  that 
there's  no  child  here." 

Just  then  they  both  started  violently,  for  a 


132  TEDDY 

double  sound  broke  on  their  ears,  a  long-drawn 
shriek  as  of  a  child  in  pain,  followed  by  Archie's 
voice,  loud  and  remorseful,  — 
"  Oh,  by  George !  " 

An  instant  later,  Theodora  appeared  on  the 
landing,  ejaculating,  — 

"  Gracious  me !  I  forgot  her. " 
"  Theodora,  what  does  this  mean  ?  "  the  doc 
tor  demanded  breathlessly,  as  he  rushed  up  the 
stairs.  Then,  at  the  open  door,  he  paused  in 
sheer  amazement.  In  the  middle  of  the  floor 
stood  Archie  Holden,  staring  at  the  bed  with  a 
face  devoid  of  all  expression.  Sitting  up  in 
the  bed  and  staring  back  at  him  with  a  face  of 
injured  innocence  and  pain,  was  an  unwholesome 
child  of  Keltic  extraction  and  unneat  exterior, 
with  a  dingy  knitted  hood  in  lieu  of  nightcap, 
and  two  chapped  hands  appearing  from  two 
vast  gray  sleeves. 

Archie  appeared  to  think  that  it  devolved 
upon  him  to  explain  the  situation. 

"I'm  sorry,"  he  said  meekly.  "You  see,  I 
did  n't  turn  up  the  gas  at  first,  but  I  just  sat 
down  on  the  edge  of  the  bed  to  take  off  my 
shoes.  I  didn't  know  this  —  this  young  per 
son  was  here,  and  I  suppose  I  sat  on  her.  But 


HER  BOOK  133 


really  I  can't  imagine  where  she  came  from. 
I  didn't  bring  her." 

"  Theodora ! "  said  the  doctor,  sternly. 

But  Theodora  had  vanished,  to  hide  her  head 
from  the  sight  of  her  prote'ge'e,  and  from  the 
merriment  shining  in  Archie's  blue  eye^f. 


134  TEDDY 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN 

you  often  do  that  kind  of  thing,  Miss 
Teddy?" 

Theodora,  with  her  hands  full  of  books,  was 
passing  through  the  lower  hall.  At  the  sudden 
question,  she  glanced  up  to  see  Archie  Holden 
leaning  on  the  banisters  and  looking  down  at 
her. 

«  What  thing  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Oh,  adopting  stray  babies.  You  gave  me  a 
fine  fright,  last  night." 

Theodora  blushed.  Then,  as  she  met  his 
merry  eyes,  she  burst  out  laughing. 

"  Was  n't  it  awful  ?  I  put  the  child  to  bed 
and  promised  her  some  supper,  and  then  I  forgot 
her." 

"  And  I  sat  on  her,"  Archie  supplemented. 
"  I  don't  know  which  of  us  was  the  more  as 
tonished,  she  or  I.  What  were  you  going  to  do 
with  her  ?  " 

"  Why,  you  see,"  Theodora  dropped  her  books 
on  the  seat  by  the  staircase  and  settled  herself 


HER   BOOK  135 


beside  them ;  "  you  see,  it  was  my  first  expe 
rience  with  slumming." 

"With  what?" 

"  Don't  you  know  ?  Or  don't  you  have  any 
slums  in  Montana  ?  Everybody  does  it  here, 
and  it 's  beautiful." 

"What's  the  usual  modus  operandi?" 

"  The  what  ?    Talk  English,  please." 

"  How  do  you  go  at  it  ?  "  Archie  sat  down 
on  the  top  step,  to  talk  at  his  ease. 

"  Oh,  they  go  to  see  poor  people,  and  take 
them  food  and  soap  and  madonnas  and  fumi 
gate  them." 

"  The  madonnas  ?  " 

"  No,  the  people.  It  does  them  ever  so  much 
good.  Mrs.  Farrington,  Billy's  mother,  had  a 
friend  here  that  did  it,  and  she  told  us  all 
about  it." 

"I begin  to  comprehend,"  Archie  said  gravely, 
as  he  looked  down  at  the  animated  face  below 
him.  "  And  does  it  belong  to  the  plan  to 
bring  them  home  and  hide  them  in  the  guests' 
beds  ?  " 

"  How  was  I  to  know  you  were  here  ?  "  Theo 
dora  demanded.  "  Did  n't  you  take  us  all  by 
surprise  ? " 

"  I  meant  to  surprise  Bess,  and  I  rather  flatter 


136  TEDDY 

myself  I  succeeded.  I  say,  Miss  Teddy,  what 
relation  are  we,  anyhow  ?  " 

"  Hm-m."  Theodora  pondered  on  the  matter. 
';  Cousins  ?  No ;  I  suppose  you  're  my  uncle. 
Uncle  Archie.  How  respectful  that  sounds  !  " 

Archie  made  a  grimace  of  disgust. 

"  It  suggests  carpet  slippers  and  an  ivory- 
headed  cane  and  a  bandanna.  I  don't  believe  I 
care  to  be  related  at  all,  if  that 's  the  way  you  're 
going  to  work  it." 

Theodora  laughed  wickedly.  She  was  keen 
enough  to  see  that  the  young  man  was  nettled 
by  the  implied  addition  to  his  years,  and  she  was 
too  much  of  a  tease  to  allow  her  opportunity  to 
slip  by,  unheeded.  She  gave  him  a  mocking 
bow. 

"  I  'm  sorry  you  don't  care  to  claim  us,  Uncle 
Archie,"  she  said,  as  she  rose.  "  Still,  you  can't 
expect  us  to  call  mamma's  only  brother  Mr. 
Holden." 

"  Call  me  Archie,  then." 

"  How  disrespectful !  No,  Uncle  Archie  is 
quite  nice  and  proper." 

"  I  won't  answer.     Where  are  you  going  ?  " 

"  To  do  my  lessons  with  Billy.  We  have  a 
tutor."  Theodora  spoke  with  a  sudden  air  of 
complacency. 


HER   BOOK  137 


"  What  a  bother  !  I  wanted  you.  Do  you  du 
them,  every  day  ? " 

"  Yes,  every  morning,  only  we  're  generally  at 
Billy's.  What  did  you  want  ?  " 

"  Nothing  much ;  only  I  brought  on .  some 
stuff  for  Bess  and  for  —  my  new  nephews  and 
nieces,  and  I  thought,  if  you  were  n't  busy,  I  'd 
bring  it  down." 

"  How  lovely  !    I  '11  wait." 

"Oh,  Ted-dy  !"  Billy's  voice,  though  distant, 
was  emphatic  and  distinct.  "  Do  hurry  up  !  " 

She  gave  a  longing  glance  back  at  the  young 
man  at  the  top  of  the  stairway. 

"  I  can't  wait,"  she  said  regretfully.  "  I  don't 
want  to  go  ;  but  —  it 's  Billy,  you  see." 

Archie  liked  her  loyalty. 

"  No  matter ;  they  can  wait  till  noon.  Fare 
well,  my  niece,  and  mind  your  teacher." 

"  I  will,  Uncle  Archie." 

Two  months  before  this  time,  soon  after  Billy 
had  begun  to  rally  from  the  mysterious  strain  to 
his  back,  Mrs.  Farrington  had  appeared  in  the 
doctor's  office,  one  evening. 

"  As  usual,  I  am  asking  a  favor,"  she  said. 
"  At  last,  I  have  succeeded  in  getting  a  really 
good  tutor  for  Billy.  The  man  was  instructor 
in  Yale  till  his  health  failed,  and  he  is  highly 


138  TEDDY 

recommended  to  me.  Billy  is  bright  and  well 
advanced  for  his  age,  so  I  think  he  and  Hubert 
must  be  doing  about  the  same  work.  It  is  so 
lonely  for  him,  do  you  suppose  Hubert,  or  Theo 
dora,  or  both  of  them,  would  be  willing  to  study 
with  him,  to  keep  him  company  ?  " 

The  matter  was  settled  in  family  council, 
that  same  evening.  Though  it  seemed  to  Dr. 
McAlister  too  fine  an  opportunity  to  be  lost,  he 
left  it  entirely  to  the  choice  of  the  children. 
Theodora  accepted  the  new  plan  with  prompt 
delight.  Hubert  hesitated,  chose  the  tutor, 
chose  to  stay  in  school  with  his  boy  friends, 
dreaded  to  be  separated  from  Theodora,  and 
finally  decided  to  remain  in  the  school.  T\vo 
months  later,  Theodora  was  reading  the  Anaba 
sis,  while  Hubert  was  still  toiling  over  the  in 
tricacies  of  the  irregular  verb. 

The  tutor  proved  to  be  a  good  one,  and,  from 
the  start,  it  was  a  close  race  between  Theodora 
and  Billy.  He  was  eighteen  months  the  older  ; 
she  was  in  perfect  health,  and  her  lithe  young 
body  held  an  equally  active  mind.  Moreover, 
she  was  determined  not  to  be  outdone  by  Billy, 
nor  yet  be  a  drag  upon  him,  so  she  fell  to  work 
with  a  will  and  accomplished  wonders,  while  Mr. 
Brown  daily  rejoiced  that  his  lines  had  fallen 
in  such  pleasant  places. 


HER  BOOK  139 


At  dinner-time,  Archie  appeared,  laden  with 
his  offerings  for  his  adopted  family  circle. 

"  I  shot  this  beast,  myself,  Bess,"  he  said,  as 
he  threw  a  great  rug  at  her  feet.  "  He  was 
an  eight-hundred-pound  grizzly  who  liked  the 
smell  of  our  supper.  If  you  feel  of  his  head, 
you  can  find  the  holes  where  I  shot  him.  Tom 
Keyes  and  I  tracked  him  by  the  blood  on  the 
snow,  and  we  finally  cornered  him.  I  thought 
Hubert  might  like  these  antlers,  and  here 's 
some  trumpery  for  the  others." 

As  he  spoke,  he  tossed  a  handful  of  little 
packages  -about  the  group,  which  quickly  became 
clamorous  in  its  joy.  Theodora  looked  up  from 
her  great  nugget  mounted  on  a  slender  pin,  to 
discover  that  Billy  too  had  been  included  in  the 
frolic,  and  she  shot  an  approving  glance  at 
Archie  just  as  Allyn  climbed  to  the  young  man's 
knee. 

"  Fank  you,"  the  child  said,  with  a  sounding 
kiss.  "  I  love  you,  and  I  wish  you  'd  come  again 
and  bring  me  nonner  engine,  Uncle  Archie." 

Over  Allyn's  head,  Archie  made  a  gesture  of 
defiance  at  Theodora. 

"  That 's  your  work,  Miss  Ted.  I  owe  you 
one  for  that." 

"  This  one  ? "  she  asked,  holding  up  the  pin. 


140  TEDDY 

"  It  's  beautiful,  Uncle  Archie,  and  I  am  in  love 
with  it  already." 

For  the  next  month  a  spirit  of  revelry  ap 
peared  to  fill  the  McAlister  household.  It  was 
an  ideal  New  England  winter,  and  plenty  of 
snow  and  cold  weather  kept  the  young  people 
out  of  doors.  The  McAlisters  taught  Archie  to 
skate ;  he  taught  them  to  run  on  snowshoes  ; 
they  had  merry  coasting  parties  and  long  sleigh- 
rides  by  day.  In  the  evenings,  the  Farringtons 
usually  joined  them  for  games,  chafing-dish  sup 
pers,  impromptu  theatricals,  and  the  thousand 
and  one  other  amusements  of  a  winter  evening. 
Strange  to  say,  the  closest  intimacy  sprang  up 
between  the  invalid  and  the  energetic  young- 
engineer,  and  Billy,  who  at  first  had  jealously 
regretted  Archie's  coming,  found  that  his  own 
range  of  sports  was  broadened  by  the  strength 
and  care  of  the  young  man's  arm  and  eye. 

They  were  all  down  on  the  ice,  one  moonlight 
evening,  Archie  and  the  McAlisters  taking  turns 
in  pushing  the  skating-chair  in  which  Billy  sat, 
wrapped  in  furs.  Hubert  was  at  the  back  of 
the  chair,  leaning  on  the  bar,  while  the  others 
stood  gathered  about,  resting  from  a  network  of 
figure  eights. 

"  To-morrow  night,  the   moon  will  be  full," 


HER  BOOK  141 


Theodora  said,  as  she  rubbed  her  nose  with 
the  back  of  her  mitten.  "  I  do  so  hope  it  will 
be  good  skating,  for  it  will  be  about  our  last 
chance.  Next  night,  we  have  to  go  to  that 
stupid  old  party,  and,  the  night  after,  we  give 
our  play." 

"  I  'm  getting  to  the  end  of  my  nights," 
Archie  said  regretfully.  "I  had  a  letter  from 
the  chief,  to-day,  and  he  wants  me  to  report  to 
him,  the  first." 

"  So  soon  as  that?"  Hope's  tone  was  remon 
strant,  as  she  looked  at  him  with  startled  eyes. 
"You  didn't  mean  to  go  so  early." 

"  No  ;  I  meant  to  stay  till  the  fifteenth ;  but 
this  will  take  me  off,  next  week." 

"  Does  mamma  know  ?  "     Theodora  asked. 

"Not  yet.  Don't  tell  her,  please,  till  to 
morrow.  She  always  hates  to  have  me  start  off 
again,  when  I've  been  home." 

"No  wonder,"  Theodora  said  impulsively. 
"You  aren't  half  so  bad  as  you  might  be, 
Uncle  Archie." 

He  bowed  low. 

"  Thanks  awfully.  But  I  am  freezing.  I  '11 
race  you  two  girls  to  the  dead  pine  and  back." 

"  All  right.  You  be  umpire,  Billy.  What 's 
the  prize  ?  " 


142  TEDDY 

"  A  mate  to  your  nugget.  Come  on." 
With  a  laughing  word  to  Billy,  they  swept  off 
up  the  pond,  while  the  ice  rang  hard  under  their 
long,  swinging  strokes.  Archie  led  ;  but  Hope 
and  Theodora  were  close  behind  him  when  he 
reached  the  old  pine-tree.  As  they  turned  to 
face  the  sheet  of  silver  light  reflected  back  from 
the  surface  of  the  ice,  Theodora  gasped  with 
the  beauty  of  it  all,  and  with  the  tense  physical 
excitement  of  the  moment.  For  one  instant, 
she  seemed  possessed  with  the  glorious  madness 
of  living,  with  the  splendor  of  the  night,  with 
the  cold,  sharp  air  and  the  exhilaration  of  the 
exercise.  The  next  moment,  as  she  mustered 
all  her  strength  to  pass  Archie,  she  saw  him 
stagger  and  fall.  He  had  skated  on  a  half- 
buried  stick,  and  the  sudden  check  to  his  prog 
ress  had  thrown  him  headlong  on  the  ice. 

There    was  an   instantaneous  hush,  when  it 
seemed  to  Theodora  that  all  the  o-lorv  had  died 

o          v 

out  of  the  universe.  When  she  regained  her 
scattered  senses,  Hubert  had  whirled  Billy  up 
to  the  spot,  while  Hope,  quiet  and  dainty  as  ever, 
but  a  shade  paler  than  usual,  sat  on  the  ice  with 
Archie's  head  resting  in  her  lap  and  her  hand 
kerchief  pressed  against  the  cut  in  his  forehead. 
"  Be  quiet,  Teddy,"  she  said  gently.  "  Archie 


HER  BOOK  143 


is  n't  dead,  dear.  I  think  it  has  only  stunned 
him  a  little." 

With  a  gasp  of  shame,  Theodora  realized 
that  she  had  been  crying  aloud  in  her  excite 
ment,  while  the  blurred  scratches  on  the  ice 
showed  that  she  had  been  flying  about  the  group 
in  a  futile  distraction.  With  a  groan  of  self- 
disgust,  she  dropped  down  on  the  footboard  of 
Billy's  chair. 

"  I  did  n't  mean  to,"  she  said  contritely.  "  How 
can  you  always  know  just  what  to  do,  Hope  ?  I 
wish  I  didn't  act  like  an  ape,  whenever  I'm 
frightened.  But  do  you  think  he 's  much 
hurt  ? " 

Archie  answered  the  question  by  opening  his 
eyes.  He  looked  up  at  Hope  for  a  minute,  first 
in  wonder  at  his  position,  then  with  an  expres 
sion  of  infinite  content,  as  he  saw  her  pretty 
face  bent  over  him  and  read  the  anxiety  in  her 
eyes.  Then  his  own  eyes  grew  merry,  as  he 
glanced  at  the  tearful,  dishevelled  Theodora. 

"  I  'm  not  dead  yet,"  he  said.  "  You  came 
near  beating  me ;  but  you  have  n't  done  it  yet, 
my  fair  niece."  He  tried  to  rise  as  he  spoke. 

Hope's  hand  on  his  forehead  grew  a  shade 
heavier. 

"  Wait  a  little,"  she  said.     "  You  've  cut  your- 


144  TEDDY 

self,  and  I  want  it  to  stop  bleeding,  first.  Are  n't 
you  comfortable  ?  " 

For  a  second  time,  Archie  looked  up  into  her 
eyes. 

"  Perfectly,"  he  answered  briefly. 

The  pause  which  followed  was  an  expressive 
one.  Hubert  broke  it. 

"  Ye-es,"  he  said  critically,  as  he  bent  over 
Archie  for  a  moment ;  "  you  are  n't  looking  your 
very  prettiest,  Archie.  When  you  do  get  up,  I 
advise  you  to  go  in  search  of  a  mirror." 

"Hu!" 

But  Hope's  remonstrance  came  too  late,  for 
Archie  had  already  sat  up. 

Hubert  helped  him  to  take  off  his  skates,  and 
the  little  party  started  for  home.  It  was  the 
same  walk  they  had  taken  many  times  before ; 
but  there  was  a  difference  now.  Instead  of  go 
ing  up  the  hill  in  a  merry  group,  with  Archie 
pushing  the  chair  and  Theodora  prancing  along 
by  his  side,  Billy  and  the  twins  took  the  lead, 
and  Archie  and  Hope,  in  the  shadow  of  the  trees, 
followed  along  slowly,  very  slowly. 


HER  BOOK  145 


CHAPTER  TWELVE 

SLOWLY,  very  slowly,  Theodora  was  turning 
about  in  front  of  her  mirror  to  inspect  her 
new  suit.  It  was  her  nearest  approach  to  that 
glory  of  modern  womankind,  the  tailor-made 
gown,  and  Theodora's  face  was  expressive  of  un 
mitigated  approval.  The  dark  green  cloth  suited 
her  complexion  to  perfection,  the  jacket  was 
edged  with  fur,  and  the  dark  green  hat,  rolled 
sharply  upwards,  framed  her  eager  young  face  in 
a  soft  setting  of  velvet  and  feathers.  Theodora 
looked  her  best,  and,  like  a  true  daughter  of  Eve, 
she  was  perfectly  aware  of  the  fact.  With  the 
aid  of  a  hand-glass,  she  studied  her  right  side, 
her  left  side,  her  back,  petulantly  brushed  away 
the  heavy  masses  of  her  short  hair,  made  sure 
that  Archie's  pin  showed  its  gleam  at  her  throat ; 
then  she  descended  the  stairs  in  search  of 
admiration. 

She  found  Archie  in  the  parlor,  the  symmetry 
of  his  face  somewhat  marred  by  the  patch  of 
plaster  on  his  right  temple. 
10 


146  TEDDY 

"  How  do  you  like  it,  Uncle  Arch  ?  "  she  de 
manded,  clasping  her  hands  and  revolving  before 
him  like  a  teetotum. 

"It 's  good.  You  look  warm  and  comfortable, 
and  not  a  bit  floppy,"  he  answered.  "  When  do 
you  go  ?  " 

"  Friday.  I  'd  much  rather  wait  till  Tuesday, 
and  see  you  off ;  but  beggars  must  n't  be 
choosers,  and  it  was  lovely  of  Mrs.  Farrington 
to  ask  me." 

"  You  '11  have  a  great  time  with  them,"  Archie 
returned,  privately  reflecting  that  Mrs.  Farring 
ton  had  no  cause  to  be  ashamed  of  her  charge. 
For  the  past  three  days,  he  had  been  devoting 
most  of  his  spare  time  to  gentle  Hope,  yet  he 
confessed  to  a  hearty  admiration  for  off-hand, 
boyish  Theodora,  who  had  done  so  much  to  make 
his  stay  a  pleasant  one.  "  Going  to  write  to  me, 
Ted  ? "  he  added  persuasively. 

"  I  don't  know.     What  for  ?  " 

"To  tell  me  the  gossip,  of  course.  When  a 
fellow  is  away  in  camp,  it's  good  to  get  letters 
from  friends  at  home."  Archie's  tone  was 
charged  with  the  sentimentality  of  his  years. 
He  was  sorry  to  turn  his  back  upon  civilization 
once  more,  sorry  to  lose  touch  with  his  adopted 
nieces ;  and,  above  all,  most  humanly  sorry  to 


HER  BOOK  147 


find  that  Theodora  was  taking  his  approaching 
departure  in  such  a  philosophical  spirit. 

"  Oh,  I  'd  just  as  soon  write,  if  you  want  me 
to,"  she  answered,  while  she  settled  her  collar 
and  gave  a  feminine  tweak  to  her  sleeves  ;  "  only 
I  don't  see  the  use  of  it.  Mamma  will  be  sure 
to  write,  and  there 's  no  use  wasting  stamps  in 
telling  you  the  news  twice  over." 
.  Assuredly  Theodora  was  not  inclined  to  senti 
ment,  and  Archie  strolled  away  to  Hope,  in 
search  of  appreciation,  just  as  Phebe  bounced 
into  the  room.  At  sight  of  Theodora's  new 
gown,  she  halted  abruptly. 

"  I  suppose  you  think  you  look  pretty  well," 
she  said  crushingly. 

"Well,  yes,  I  do,"  Theodora  replied,  with 
feigned  indifference,  for  she  always  shrank  from 
Phebe's  criticism.  "  How  do  you  like  it  ?  " 

Phebe  walked  around  her  and  inspected  her 
from  top  to  toe  with  provoking  deliberation. 

"  It  would  n't  be  so  bad,"  she  remarked  at 
length.  "  The  coat  is  n't  quite  right  in  the  back, 
somehow ;  and  is  n't  your  hat  a  little  mite  one 
sided  ? " 

"Oh,  Babe,  I  wish  anything  ever  suited  you," 
Theodora  broke  out  impatiently.  "You  always 
find  something  wrong  somewhere." 


148  TEDDY 

But  Phebe  rebuked  her. 

"  Now,  don't  get  cross,  Teddy.  Mrs.  Far- 
rington  won't  think  you're  a  good  companion 
for  Billy,  if  you  are  as  cross  as  that." 

"  Companion  ?  " 

"  Yes.  Of  course  she  would  n't  have  taken 
you  to  New  York,  if  she  had  n't  wanted  some 
body  to  take  care  of  Billy  when  she  was 
busy." 

Phebe  had  a  genius  for  aiming  her  shafts 
which  was  far  in  advance  of  her  years.  Theo 
dora  winced  ;  then  she  turned  to  her  little  sis 
ter  with  a  sort  of  fierceness. 

"  Who  said  so  ? "  she  demanded. 

"  I  say  so,"  Phebe  returned  calmly,  as  she 
settled  herself  on  the  sofa  ;  "  and  so  does  Isabel 
St.  John." 

Theodora's  exasperation  reached  a  climax. 

"  If  you  two  children  don't  stop  talking  over 
my  affairs,  I  '11  tell  papa,"  she  said  in  impotent 
rage,  for  the  McAlister  code  of  honor  scorned 
brute  force,  and  she  dared  not  give  her  young 
sister  the  shaking  she  so  richly  deserved. 

"Tattle-tale!"  Phebe  replied  in  brief  de 
rision. 

Theodora  fled  to  her  room,  for  she  felt  that 
she  was  no  match  for  her  composed  young  ad- 


HER   BOOK  149 


versary.  Hope  found  her,  an  hour  later,  sit 
ting  in  a  heap  on  the  side  of  her  bed. 

"Don't  mind,  dear,"  she  said  gently.  "I 
knew  Babe  had  been  saying  something  hateful ; 
but  it 's  only  her  way.  Mrs.  Farrington  wants 
you  to  have  a  good  time,  and  I  'm  so  glad  you 
are  going.  Three  weeks  in  New  York  will  be 
good  for  you,  and  you  will  see  ever  so  much. 
Just  think  how  lonely  we  are  going  to  be  with 
out  you  and  Archie  !  "  Her  voice  broke  a  little. 

Theodora  kissed  her  impulsively. 

"  Truly,  are  you  going  to  miss  me  so  much, 
Hope  ?  I  '11  stay  at  home,  if  you  will.  I  really 
shouldn't  mind." 

"  Of  course  we  shall  miss  you,  Ted,  you  and 
Archie  both.  Hu  and  I  are  going  to  be  forlorn 
and  dull  enough ;  but  that 's  no  reason  you  are 
to  stay  here,  and  lose  such  a  chance.  Archie 
has  asked  me  to  write  to  him,"  she  added  a 
little  inconsequently. 

Not  even  Phebe's  cutting  remarks  could  blunt 
the  edge  of  Theodora's  happiness,  three  days 
later,  as  she  went  gliding  into  the  vast  babel  of 
the  Grand  Central  Station.  It  had  been  her 
first  real  journey;  it  was  her  first  sight  of  New 
York,  that  Mecca  of  all  true  and  loyal  Ameri 
cans,  and  she  gave  a  little  gasp  of  sheer  delight 


150  TEDDY 

while  she  followed  Mrs.  Farrington  from  the 
car  and  turned  to  wait  for  Patrick  and  Billy. 
She  watched  it  all  with  open-eyed  content,  the 
uniformed  porters,  the  throng  of  hungry-look 
ing  cabmen,  the  comfortable  carriage,  and  the 
broad,  crowded  streets  through  which  they  drove 
to  reach  the  hotel.  The  hotel  itself  completed 
her  satisfaction.  Mrs.  Farrington  liked  luxury, 
both  for  herself  and  for  the  sake  of  her  invalid 
son,  and  Theodora  could  not  wonder  enough  at 
the  greatness  and  glitter  of  it  all,  the  halls  and 
parlors,  the  huge  dining-room  and  their  own 
cosy  suite  of  rooms  near  by.  Strange  to  say, 
after  the  first  night,  she  was  quite  at  her  ease, 
and  settled  into  her  luxurious  surroundings 
with  an  apparent  unconsciousness  which  was 
as  gratifying  to  Mrs.  Farrington  as  it  was 
amusing. 

It  was  all  old  ground  to  Mrs.  Farrington  and 
Billy ;  but  they  enjoyed  exploring  the  city  with 
their  eager  young  guest,  who  revelled  in  it  with 
all  the  enthusiasm  of  her  years.  Wherever  a 
carriage  could  go,  wherever  the  faithful  Patrick 
could  help  his  young  master,  there  they  went, 
until  Theodora,  with  the  aid  of  her  well-studied 
map,  knew  the  city  from  the  Battery  to  the 
fastnesses  of  Harlem.  It  seemed  to  the  young 


HER  BOOK  151 


girl  that  the  ordinary  laws  of  time  and  space 
had  been  suspended,  and  that  she  was  living  in 
a  gilded  fairyland  which  would  continue  till 
the  end  of  days. 

There  was  even  one  wonderful  evening  when 
Theodora,  in  a  fresh,  light  gown  which  had 
mysteriously  appeared  from  one  of  Mrs.  Far- 
rington's  trunks,  and  Billy,  in  a  brand-new  suit 
and  immaculate  tie,  went  with  Mrs.  Farrington 
to  hear  Calve  and  the  De  Reszkds  sing  Carmen. 
After  that,  the  rest  was  rather  of  the  nature  of 
an  anticlimax,  and  Theodora  spent  the  next 
day  in  a  grove  of  paper,  transporting  Marianne 
and  Violet  to  the  Metropolitan  Opera  House  in 
a  blaze  of  diamonds  and  yards  of  white  silk 
gowns. 

On  the  following  morning,  she  was  still  deep 
in  this  pleasant  task.  The  rain  was  sweeping 
against  the  windows;  yet,  in  imagination,  Vio 
let  was  cantering  through  one  of  the  bridle 
paths  in  the  Park,  with  Gerald  at  her  side, 
when  Mrs.  Farrington  came  into  the  room. 

"  May  I  interrupt  you,  Teddy  ? "  she  asked, 
with  the  gentle  courtesy  which  made  Theodora 
feel  so  grown-up  and  elegant. 

Theodora  threw  aside  her  pen. 

"  What  is  it  ?  "  she  asked  with  alacrity. 


152  TEDDY 

"Nothing  very  pleasant,  for  I  shall  have  te> 
send  you  out  in  this  storm.  I  've  just  taken 
Will  down  to  Joe  Everard's  to  spend  the  morn 
ing,  and  I  promised  to  call  for  him,  this  noon. 
When  I  came  back,  1  found  a  note  from  Mrs. 
Keith,  asking  me  to  come  to  lunch,  to  meet  one 
of  our  California  cousins.  Do  you  feel  as  if 
you  could  go  down  in  the  carriage  and  come 
back  with  Will  ?  I  hate  to  have  him  alone, 
in  case  anything  happens." 

Theodora  laughed  contentedly. 

"  What  an  idea !  Of  course  I  '11  go.  I  always 
love  to  drive,  you  know.  Where  's  the  place  ?  " 

"  Away  down  town,  near  Washington  Square. 
You  'd  better  go  right  down  Fifth  Avenue.  I  '11 
dress,  then,  and  go  to  Mrs.  Keith's;  and  then 
send  the  carriage  back  for  you,  if  you  '11  be 
ready. " 

Theodora  went  back  to  her  writing,  and  the 
moments  slid  away  only  too  rapidly.  What 
ever  was  the  result  of  her  labors,  she  enjoyed 
them  keenly.  All  through  the  winter,  though 
Phcbe  scolded  and  Allyn  teased  and  the  world 
about  her  went  awry,  she  had  been  able  to  for 
get  it  all  in  the  adventures  of  her  imaginary 
friends,  the  tale  of  whose  doings  had  come  to 
be  bulky  and  dog's-eared  from  frequent  read- 


HER  BOOK  153 


ings.     She  was  still  busy  over  her  work,  when 
Patrick  came  to  the  door. 

"  The  carriage  is  here,  Miss  Theodora. " 
She  quickly  put  on  her  hat  and  coat.  Pat 
rick  banged  the  carriage  door  behind  her  and 
mounted  the  box  beside  the  driver,  and  they 
drove  away.  It  was  the  first  time  she  had 
driven  out  in  solitary  splendor,  and  Theodora 
felt  very  dignified  and  luxurious  as  she  leaned 
back  on  the  cushions  and  idly  watched  the  pass 
ing  show  which  had  grown  so  familiar  to  her 
during  the  past  two  weeks.  When  they  came 
to  the  lower  end  of  the  Avenue,  she  sat  up  in 
quick  attention,  for  she  was  passing  window 
after  window  full  of  books  spread  out  in  entic 
ing  array,  and  above  the  doorways  she  read  on 
the  gilded  signs  the  names  which  she  had 
learned  to  know  were  on  the  titlepages  of  the 
books  within.  At  the  sight,  there  came  into 
her  mind  a  sudden  recollection  of  her  wTell-worn 
manuscript  at  home,  and  of  the  tales  she  had 
read  of  young  writers  who  had  made  their  way 
into  the  publisher's  presence. 

With   an    impulsive    movement,    she   tapped 
sharply  on  the  window. 

"Stop,  please,"  she  said.     "On  this  side." 
Obediently  the  driver  drew  up  opposite  the 


154  TEDDY 

doorway  of  a  firm  of  international  fame,  and 
Theodora,  secure  in  the  consciousness  of  her 
new  gown  and  the  unwonted  luxury  of  the  car 
riage  and  Patrick,  entered  the  store.  It  was  a 
dreary  day  of  a  dull  season,  and  with  compara 
tively  little  trouble  she  found  herself  in  a  quiet 
office  on  the  third  floor  of  the  building.  Its 
occupant,  a  tall,  thin  man  with  iron-gray  hair, 
looked  up  at  her  approach,  and  a  slight  expres 
sion  of  wonder  came  into  his  eyes  as  they  rested 
on  his  girlish  visitor. 

"  What  can  I  do  for  you  ? "  he  asked  cour 
teously. 

Theodora  was  breathing  a  little  quickly,  and 
the  bright  color  came  and  went  in  her  cheeks. 
All  unconsciously,  she  was  looking  her  very 
best. 

"  I  came  to  ask  you  about  publishing  a  book. " 

"Mm.     Is  it  one  you  have  written  ?  " 

"Yes." 

There  was  a  pause,  slight,  yet  perceptible. 
Then  the  man  asked,  — 

"  What  sort  of  a  book  is  it  ?  " 

"It's  a  novel.     Kind  of  a  love  story." 

"How  long  is  it?" 

"There  are  thirty-seven  chapters  done." 

"Then  it  isn't  finished?" 


HER  BOOK  155 


"No;  but  I  could  end  it  off  about  any  time, 
if  you  are  in  a  hurry  for  it." 

In  spite  of  himself,  the  publisher  smiled. 
Theodora's  girlish  naivetd  was  refreshing  to 
him.  He  liked  her  face  and  manner,  and  he 
was  curious  to  see  more  of  this  young  aspirant 
for  fame,  so  he  pushed  forward  a  chair. 

"Sit  down,  "he  said  genially ;  "and  tell  me 
more  about  it. " 

With  the  off-hand,  healthy  directness  of  a 
boy,  Theodora  plunged  into  the  midst  of  her 
plot  and  unfolded  all  its  intricacies.  The  pub 
lisher  listened  till  the  end,  always  with  the 
same  little  smile  on  his  face. 

"  How  old  are  you  ? "  he  asked,  when  she 
paused  for  breath. 

"Sixteen." 

"  And  you  want  to  write  books  ?  " 

"Awfully."  Theodora's  hand  shut,  as  it  lay 
in  her  lap.  "I'm  going  to  do  it,  too,  some 
day." 

"  Good  !  I  think  perhaps  you  will.  And  you 
live  in  New  York  ?  " 

"  No ;  I  live  in  Massachusetts ;  but  I  'm  here 
with  Mrs.  Farrington." 

"Mrs.  Farrington?  Mrs.  William  H.  Far 
rington?  " 


156  TEDDY 

"Yes." 

"Is  it  possible !     Did  she  send  you  to  me?  " 

"No;  I  came.     Do  you  know  her?  " 

"Very   well,    and   for   ever   so  many  years, 
since  she  was  younger  than  you." 

"I  never  heard  her  say  anything  about  you," 
Theodora  said,  with  unflattering  directness. 

"Very  likely  not.  But  now,  my  dear  little 
girl,  I  am  going  to  give  you  some  advice.  I 
am  afraid  we  can't  take  your  book.  It  is  n't  in 
our  line ;  but  some  day  you  may  write  some 
thing  that  is,  and  then  I  shall  be  glad  to  see  it. 
Now,  if  you  really  mean  to  write  good  books, 
you  must  read  good  ones,  the  best  ones  that  are 
written ;  you  must  study  a  great  deal  and  study 
all  sorts  of  things,  for  you  can  never  tell  what 
will  help  you  most.  Keep  on  writing,  if  you 
want  to;  but  don't  expect  to  have  anything 
published  for  ten  years.  By  that  time,  you 
will  just  be  ready  to  begin  your  work.  Some 
time,  we  may  meet  again,"  he  added,  as  he 
rose ;  "  and  then  you  must  tell  me  all  you  have 
done.  I  think  I  shall  have  reason  to  congratu 
late  you.  Till  then,  good-by.  Give  my  regards 
to  Mrs.  Farrington,  and  tell  her  that  I  shall  try 
to  call  on  her  before  she  leaves  the  city. " 

Theodora  read  her  dismissal  in  the  shrewd, 


HER  BOOK  157 


kindly  brown  eyes.  She  went  away  in  a  glori 
fied  dream  of  the  future  which  lasted  until  she 
saw  Billy  crossing  the  pavement,  leaning  on 
one  crutch  and  with  Patrick's  strong  arm  sup 
porting  his  weight  on  the  other  side.  He 
looked  tired,  and  his  brave  helplessness  struck 
her  in  strong  contrast  to  her  own  exuberant 
happiness.  It  suddenly  seemed  to  her  that  it 
would  be  selfish  to  boast  of  her  own  hopes,  in 
the  face  of  his  uncertain  future,  so  she  locked 
her  lips  on  the  subject  of  her  morning's  adven 
ture,  and  turned  to  greet  him  with  a  bright 
interest  which  concerned  itself  with  his  doings 
alone. 


158  TEDDY 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN 

"  OPRING  has  come,  and  the  McAlisters  are 
^  putting  on  their  annual  addition,"  Hope 
wrote  to  Archie  in  April.  "  It  is  on  the  west 
side,  a  new  wing.  Mother  calls  the  upper  room 
Archie's  room.  At  present,  the  downstairs 
room  goes  by  the  name  of  The  Annex,  because 
we  have  exhausted  our  ingenuity  in  naming  the 
other  rooms,  and  have  nothing  left  for  this." 

The  name  proved  to  be  an  enduring  one,  while 
the  process  of  building  was  more  exciting  than 
usual.  Dr.  McAlister  had  decided  to  have  the 
cellar  extended  for  the  wing;  and  the  rocky 
ledge  on  which  the  house  was  perched  rendered 
blasting  a  necessity.  For  a  week,  they  lived  in 
a  state  of  alarm  lest  the  house  should  be  jarred 
down  about  their  ears.  For  a  week,  they  heard 
the  steady  clink,  clink  of  the  hammers  on  the 
drills,  the  thud  of  the  stone-laden  hogsheads 
rolled  over  the  boards  above  the  rock,  and  the 
thunder  of  the  blast  as  it  exploded.  By  the 
time  the  week  was  ended,  the  noisv  work  of 


HER  BOOK  159 


the  carpenters  seemed,  in  comparison,  like 
sweet  music. 

Strange  to  say,  it  was  Allyn  who  most  gloried 
in  the  confusion,  and,  from  the  first  shovelful  of 
earth  to  the  last  nail,  he  was  always  to  be  found 
in  the  thick  of  the  fray.  No  matter  how  often 
the  workmen  picked  him  up  and  returned  him 
to  his  mother,  he  invariably  reappeared  under 
their  feet  again,  five  minutes  later,  to  be  alter 
nately  a  target  for  their  profanity  and  a  recep 
tacle  for  choice  morsels  from  their  luncheons. 

"  No,  Allyn,"  Hope  said,  with  decision,  when 
she  found  him  investigating  the  tip  of  a  freshly- 
lighted  fuse;  "you  mustn't  go  there  again, 
ever.  Do  you  hear  sister  ? " 

"  Ess,"  lisped  the  culprit.  "  I  hears  ;  but  it 
is  so  instering." 

"  Too  interesting  for  a  baby  like  you,"  Hope 
said,  laughing,  in  spite  of  her  pale  cheeks.  "  If 
you  do  that  again,  Allyn,  sister  won't  have  any 
little  brother  to  cuddle." 

"  Why  for  not  ?  " 

"  Because  you  '11  be  killed,  dear." 

"  And  will  I  be  a  little  boy  angel  ? " 

"  Yes." 

"  And  do  little  boy  angels  have  stomachs  ? " 
was  the  next  unexpected  question. 


160  TEDDY 

"  I  don't  know.     Why  ? " 

"'Cause  then  I  can  have  all  the  pieces  of 
cake  I  want,"  he  answered,  with  a  vengeful  rec 
ollection  of  the  angel  cake  forbidden  the  night 
before. 

Since  Theodora's  visit  to  New  York,  there 
had  been  no  fresh  excitement  in  the  McAlister 
household,  and  the  young  people  had  settled 
down  into  the  peaceful  routine  of  work  and  play 
which  had  preceded  Archie's  coming.  To  be 
sure,  it  was  never  quite  the  same  as  in  past 
years,  for  their  circle  had  been  widened  to 
admit  Billy  Farrington,  and,  moreover,  Archie's 
letters  created  a  new  interest  for  them  all,  for 
Hope  more  than  for  the  others,  since  to  her 
they  were  more  personal  than  to  the  rest,  and 
on  her  devolved  the  necessity  of  answering  them. 
Mrs.  McAlister  used  to  smile  quietly  to  herself, 
at  times,  and  she  had  even  spoken  of  the  matter 
to  the  doctor,  who  nodded  approvingly,  even 
though  there  was  no  actual  thing  to  which  he 
could  give  his  assent. 

"  Say,  Hu,"  Theodora  asked  abruptly,  one 
night ;  "  would  n't  it  be  funny  if  Archie  married 
Hope?" 

Hubert  stopped  whistling  and  stared  at  his 
sister  in  surprise. 


HER  BOOK  161 


"  What  an  idea,  Ted  !  Your  brain  must  be 
'way  off,  to  think  of  such  a  thing." 

"  Stranger  things  than  that  have  happened, 
Hu,"  Theodora  said  shrewdly.  "  Just  wait  a 
few  years  and  see." 

"Archie's  no  fusser,"  Hubert  said,  with  some 
scorn. 

"  Maybe  not ;  but  he  likes  Hope,  and  she 
thinks  he  is  perfect.  Of  course,  they  won't  do 
it  yet,  but  they  may  in  time.  Here  we  are. 
Come  in." 

For  the  first  time  in  their  lives,  the  twins 
were  on  their  way  to  a  temperance  meeting. 
Dr.  McAlister  had  always  felt  that  such  meet 
ings  were  no  place  for  impressionable  children, 
that  the  sensational  methods  of  oratory  were  not 
for  young  ears ;  and  Hubert  and  Theodora  had 
experienced  some  difficulty  in  coaxing  their 
father  to  give  his  consent  to  their  hearing  a 
famous  young  Irish  orator  who  was  holding  a 
series  of  meetings  in  the  town.  It  was  a  new 
experience  for  Theodora,  who,  from  the  first 
moment,  was  swayed  to  and  fro  at  the  speaker's 
will,  now  laughing  at  his  broad  humor,  now 
winking  away  her  tears  at  his  pathos,  now 
thrilling  through  all  her  lithe  young  body  at  his 
stirring  appeals  for  help  to  raise  the  drink- 
n 


162  TEDDY 

sodden  world  around  him.  Hubert  was  more 
sceptical. 

"  What  a  fib  !  "  he  remarked,  at  the  close  of 
the  story  which  ended  the  lecture.  "  I  know 
things  never  happened  as  pat  as  that.  They 
don't,  out  of  books,  I  bet.  What  are  you  going 
to  do,  Ted  ?  " 

Theodora,  her  face  flushed  and  her  eyes  like 
stars,  had  started  forward  to  the  stage. 

"  I  'm  going  to  sign  the  pledge,  Hu." 

"  What  for  ?     You  don't  get  drunk." 

"For  my  example.  Oh,  Hu,  think  of  the 
saloons  in  the  east  end  of  town  !  And  we  've 
never  done  anything  to  help  them  !  It  's 
terrible." 

She  came  back  to  him  with  her  hands  full  of 
pamphlets.  Hubert  eyed  her  askance. 

"  I  say,  Ted,  what  are  those  ?  " 

"  Tracts." 

"  What  for  ?  " 

"  I  am  going  to  take  them  to  some  of  those 
people,  to-morrow.  It  may  wake  them  up  to 
what  they  are  doing." 

"  They  're  more  likely  to  wake  you  up,  Ted. 
Go  easy.  You  know  papa  never  will  let  you." 

"  I  sha'n't  ask  him,  then,"  she  said  proudly. 
"  If  it 's  right,  it 's  right,  and  nobody  ought  to 
stop  me." 


HER  BOOK  163 


Hubert  whistled  softly. 

"  Look  out,  Ted.  Remember  the  kid  you 
stole  ?  This  may  come  out  as  your  slumming 
did,  you  know." 

But  Theodora  started  out,  the  next  morning, 
the  tracts  in  her  hand  and  zeal  in  her  heart. 
At  the  very  first  saloon,  she  was  doomed  to 
disillusion. 

"  It  is  a  wicked  life,"  she  said  firmly  ;  "  and 
you  ought  to  be  ashamed." 

For  a  wonder,  the  man  knew  neither  Dr. 
McAlister  nor  his  daughter,  and  he  was  not 
moved  to  awe  by  this  child. 

"  Do  you  think  it  is  any  of  your  business,  my 
fine  lady  ? "  he  demanded  sharply. 

Theodora  quailed. 

"  N-n-no-o-o-o ;  I  don't,"  she  said  faintly, 
and  fled  from  the  door  into  the  arms  of  her 
father,  who  chanced  to  be  passing  by. 

"  Theodora ! "  he  exclaimed. 

"  Yes,  sir."  She  hung  her  head  guiltily,  for 
she  instinctively  felt  his  disapproval. 

"  "What  are  you  doing  here,  in  such  a  place  ?" 
he  asked  more  sternly  than  he  was  wont  to 
speak. 

"  I 'm  —  I 'm  —  I'm  —  "  she  faltered. 

He  held  out  his  hand  for  the  tracts.     She 


164  TEDDY 

gave  them  up  reluctantly,  and  she  saw  him 
frown  as  he  read  their  lurid  headings.  For  a 
moment  he  looked  perplexed ;  then  he  said 
quietly,  — 

"  Theodora,  I  wish  you  to  go  home  at  once, 
and  to  say  nothing  of  this  to  anyone.  To-night, 
after  supper,  come  to  the  office.  I  want  to  talk 
this  over  with  you." 

"  Yes,  papa." 

Her  lip  quivered,  and  he  relaxed  a  little  of 
his  sternness. 

"  I  know  you  did  n't  mean  to  do  wrong,  my 
dear.  I  am  not  going  to  scold  you  ;  but  there  are 
a  good  many  things  I  want  to  say  to  you,  —  things 
we  can't  say  here.  That  is  all." 

To  Theodora's  mind,  the  day  dragged  per 
ceptibly.  She  was  conscious  of  her  father's 
disapproval,  conscious  that,  in  her  girlish  impul 
siveness,  she  had  gone  where  she  had  no  business 
to  go.  It  was  a  relief  when  supper  was  over,  and 
she  followed  her  father  into  his  office. 

He  pulled  out  a  great  easy-chair  and  sat 
down. 

"  Come  here,  my  girlie,  and  cuddle  in  beside 
me,  as  you  used  to  do,"  he  said,  with  an  inviting 
gesture.  "  Now  tell  me  all  about  it." 

Theodora  poured  forth  her  tale  in  an  inco- 


HER  BOOK  165 


herent  tide.  Her  father,  listening  and  stroking 
the  brown  head,  smiled  a  little,  from  time  to 
time.  When  she  had  finished, — 

"  What  is  temperance,  Teddy  ? "  he  asked 
abruptly. 

"  Not  to  drink  rum,"  she  answered,  with  glib 
promptness. 

He  smiled  again. 

"  That  is  only  a  tiny  little  part  of  it,  my  girl." 

"  Of  course.  I  mean  whiskey,  too,  and  beer, 
and  —  and  —  " 

"  Never  mind  the  rest  of  them  now.  It 's  a 
good  long  list,  and  the  worst  of  the  drinking  is  n't 
always  done  in  the  saloons." 

"  Where  is  it,  then  ? "  Theodora  looked  at  him 
in  astonishment. 

"  At  banquets  and  dinners  and  receptions. 
Too  often  at  college  suppers,  and  by  boys  not 
much  older  than  Hu." 

"  Really  ? " 

"  Yes,  Ted.  Now,  my  dear,  I  'm  going  to  give 
you  a  lecture.  It  won't  be  like  the  one  you 
heard,  last  night,  for  I  'm  not  a  temperance 
orator,  only  a  plain  old  doctor.  Temperance 
is  n't  signing  the  pledge,  or  keeping  it  after  it  is 
signed  ;  it  is  keeping  one's  self  free  from  all  kinds 
of  badness  and  excess,  whether  it 's  drinking  or 


166  TEDDY 

smoking,  or  too  much  dancing,  or  tight  shoes. 
It  is  taking  all  our  pleasures  moderately,  so  that 
they  can  never  hurt  our  bodies  or  our  minds. 
Do  you  see  what  I  mean  ? " 

"But  oughtn't  all  liquor  to  be  taken  away  ?"  she 
urged,  still  mindful  of  the  orator's  sounding 
periods. 

"  Like  any  other  powerful  drug.  It 's  one 
thing  to  use  it,  Ted,  another  to  abuse  it,  as  we 
doctors  know.  There  are  times  when  it  must  be 
used,  just  like  any  other  medicine.  Because  I 
give  you  a  dose,  one  day,  you  don't  need  to  go 
on  taking  it  forever,  dear." 

He  paused  for  a  minute,  then  he  went  on, — 

"  That  is  one  side  of  it,  —  a  side  that  we  must 
look  at.  On  the  other  is  the  horrible  danger  of 
forming  the  habit  of  taking  wine  and  such  things 
to  excess.  The  suffering  is  terrible,  and  the 
poverty.  That  comes  from  intemperance  in  drink 
more  than  from  any  other  form  of  it ;  and  the  only 
way  that  it  is  to  be  prevented  is  for  us  parents 
to  teach  our  boys  and  girls  all  the  danger,  teach 
them  that,  because  they  want  it,  there  is  no 
excuse  for  their  taking  it.  If  you  are  n't  strong 
enough  to  deny  yourself  something  you  know  is 
a  sin,  you  haven't  learned  the  first  lesson  of 
good  living.  But  it  is  n't  drinking  alone  ;  there 


HER   BOOK  167 


are  other  sins  that  are  as  bad  and  as  dangerous  ; 
and  a  man  or  woman,  to  be  strong  and  pure 
and  good,  must  turn  his  back  upon  them  all." 

"  But  I  did  want  to  help,"  Theodora  said. 
"  There  ought  to  be  something  that  a  girl  can 
do." 

"  So  there  is,"  her  father  answered  quickly. 

"  What  ? " 

"From  now  on,  through  all  your  young  woman 
hood,  be  sure  you  stand  on  the  right  side  of 
things.  Don't  preach.  That  never  does  any 
good.  Just  frown  down  any  fastness  in  your 
friends.  Let  it  be  understood  that  you  have 
nothing  to  do  with  a  man  who  drinks  and  swears, 
with  a  girl  who  is  fast  or  familiar,  who  laces  till 
she  can't  breathe,  and  dances  all  night  with  men 
whom  she  hardly  knows.  Let  my  Teddy,  even 
if  she  must  stand  alone,  stand  for  all  that  is 
truest  and  best  in  women,  and  the  young  men 
and  women  around  her  will  respect  her  and  try 
to  pull  themselves  up  to  her  standard.  You 
needn't  be  a  prig,  Ted.  Be  as  full  of  fun  as 
you  can  ;  the  more,  the  better,  only  choose  your 
fun  carefully.  Your  old  father  knows  what  he  's 
talking  about,  and  he  knows  that  girls  have 
more  influence  than  most  of  them  are  willing 
to  use." 


168  TEDDY 

Theodora's  cheek  was  resting  against  her 
father's  shoulder,  and  her  eyes  had  drooped. 

"  I  will,"  she  said  humbly. 

"And  remember  this,  my  girlie  ;  I  am  always1 
here  to  talk  things  over  with  you  and  advise  you. 
When  you  are  older,  perhaps  you  can  help  m^ 
with  my  poorer  patients.  Till  then,  Teddy,  wait, 
and  don't  try  to  do  too  much.  You  're  only  my 
little  girl  yet;  and  the  world  is  too  big  for  you 
to  understand.  Good-night,  dear.  Now  I  must 
go." 

It  was  the  last  of  the  lecture ;  but,  simple  as 
it  had  been,  Theodora  never  lost  the  memory  of 
the  quiet  hour  in  the  office,  and  in  after  years 
she  learned  to  know  the  value  of  the  lesson  so 
gently  given. 


HER  BOOK  169 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN 

ACK  again,  at  last  ? "  Billy  looked  up 
with  a  smile,  as  Theodora  came  flying 
into  the  room. 

"  Yes.     Have  you  missed  me  ? " 

"  Have  n't  I  ?  You  must  n't  go  off  again, 
Ted.  You  are  altogether  too  frisky." 

"  What  could  I  do  ?     Papa  took  me." 

"  Had  a  good  time  ?  " 

"  Beautiful.  It 's  too  much  for  one  spring,  — • 
three  weeks  in  New  York,  and  this  lovely  week 
of  driving." 

"  You  had  good  weather,  sure  enough.  Also, 
ma'am,  you 're  brown  as  a  squaw.  Also,  I  think 
your  hair  has  grown." 

"  Wish  't  would  ;  but  that 's  a  forbidden  sub 
ject.  I  '11  tell  you  one  thing,  Billy  Farrington  :  if 
I  ever  do  get  any  hair  again,  I  '11  guard  it  like 
the  apple  of  my  eye.  But  what  about  you  ? " 

"  News." 

"  Oh,  what  ?  "  she  questioned  eagerly. 

"  Well,  we  went  down  to  see  Dr.  Parker,  last 
Saturday." 


170  TEDDY 

"  What  did  he  say  ?  " 

"  That  I  'm  doing  as  well  as  could  be  expected." 

"  What  else  ?  I  know  there  's  something  good  ; 
you  show  it  all  over." 

Billy  tried  to  draw  down  his  face,  failed,  gave 
up  the  effort,  and  laughed  instead. 

"  'T  is  good,  Ted.  I  told  them  not  to  tell  you, 
for  I  wanted  the  fun  of  it.  He  says  I  can  plan 
to  enter  college,  a  year  from  this  fall ;  he  says 
in  three  months  I  can  walk  as  far  as  my  crutches 
will  take  me,  and  he  says  in  a  few  years  I'll  be 
as  well  as  ever.  Is  n't  it  fine  ?  Why,  Ted, 
what 's  the  matter  ?  " 

"  Nothing  ;  only  I  'm  a  goose."  And  Theo 
dora  looked  up,  her  eyes  shining  with  happy 
tears.  "  You  know  I  'm  glad,  Billy ;  only  I 
don't  know  how  to  say  it  straight." 

"  That 's  all  right,  Ted.  It  sort  of  took  my 
own  breath  away  at  first.  I  could  n't  wait  to 
tell  you,  for  you  've  been  the  best  friend  I  've 
had.  You  've  pulled  me  through  lots  of  bad 
places." 

Theodora's  face  was  very  gentle ;  but  she 
laughed. 

"  The  chair  runs  easily,  Billy.  It  did  n't  take 
much  pulling." 

"  That 's   another   thing."      Billy's  face  was 


HER   BOOK 


growing  brighter  with  every  moment.  "  I  've 
said  good-by  to  the  chair." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?    You  can't  walk  yet  ? " 

"  No ;  but  I  'm  going  to  have  a  tricycle  that 
runs  with  my  hands,  and  I  can  go  wherever  I 
choose.  How  will  you  like  to  have  me  running 
away  from  you  ?  " 

"  You  can't ;  I  '11  hang  on  behind,  Billy.  A 
tricycle  ?  How  splendid  !  I  believe  I  envy  you 
more  than  ever." 

"  I  '11  swap  my  tricycle  for  your  back,"  he 
retorted. 

"  I  wish  we  could  take  turns.  When  is  it 
coming?" 

"  Friday,  the  letter  said." 

"  All  right ;  I  '11  make  the  most  of  the  time  till 
then.  After  you  get  it,  there  '11  be  no  catching 
a  glimpse  of  you." 

Billy  laughed,  and  it  seemed  to  Theodora 
that  his  laugh  was  a  little  mocking. 

"  I  '11  whistle  to  you,  as  I  go  by.  Honestly, 
Ted,  it  does  seem  hard  to  leave  you  alone,  when 
we  've  had  such  great  times  together." 

His  words  were  the  echo  of  her  thoughts. 
For  a  moment,  Theodora  struggled  with  herself. 
Then  her  real  love  for  her  friend  triumphed. 

"  It  will  make  ever  so  much  difference,  Billy  ; 


172  TEDDY 

but  I  'm  glad  of  it.  We've  had  our  good  times 
together,  lots  of  them,  and  there  '11  always  be 
our  lessons,  you  know.  Truly  and  honestly, 
you  've  had  about  all  the  girl  you  can  stand, 
and  it 's  time  you  were  able  to  ride  off  with  the 
boys." 

Billy  leaned  back  in  his  chair  and  surveyed 
her  through  narrowed  lids. 

"  Girls  are  n't  half  bad,  Teddy,"  he  observed  ; 
"  but  I'm  glad  you  take  it  so  philosophically." 

There  was  a  long  pause.  Then  Theodora 
spoke. 

"  I  've  some  news,  too,  Billy." 

«  Good  ? " 

"  I  thought  so,  till  I  heard  yours.  Now  it 
seems  rather  flat." 

"What  is  it?" 

"  My  story  is  done,"  she  answered  quietly,  but 
with  a  little  heightening  of  her  color. 

"  Done  ?  To  the  very  end  ?  Get  it,"  he 
commanded. 

"  No  ;  not  yet.  I  only  finished  it,  last  night, 
and  I  want  time  to  look  it  over,  myself,  before  I 
show  it  to  you.  I  may  not  let  you  see  it,  after 
all." 

"  Oh,  come  now,  that  's  not  square  !  Did  n't 
I  help  you,  I  'd  like  to  know  ? " 


HER  BOOK  173 


Theodora  cocked  her  head  on  one  side,  and 
meditated  aloud. 

"  He  furnished  hair  and  eyes  for  one  hero, 
and  a  nose  for  the  other.  There  are  seven  of 
his  speeches,  not  very  bright  ones,  and  he  gave 
me  points  for  one  love  scene.  I  wonder  if  he  's 
earned  the  right  to  see  it." 

"  'Course  I  have.  Go  and  get  it,  and  bring 
it  over  here." 

"  Wait,"  she  begged.  "  Truly,  I  'm  not  ready 
yet.  I  'm  afraid  you  '11  laugh." 

"  Do  I  ever  laugh  at  you,  —  in  earnest,  that 
is  ?"  he  demanded. 

"  No,"  she  confessed  honestly ;  "  you  never 
do." 

"Then  you  ought  to  trust  me  with  this." 

"  You  could  n't  read  it." 

"  Read  it  to  me,  then." 

"  Well,  maybe." 

Late  that  same  day,  in  the  long  May  twilight, 
they  were  coming  up  town  together,  Theodora 
pushing  Billy  in  the  familiar  chair  which  was  so 
soon  to  be  discarded.  With  Mulvaney  trudging 
solemnly  at  their  heels,  they  had  been  loitering 
along  in  the  sunset,  while  Billy  gave  himself  up 
to  the  bright  companionship  which  he  had  so 
sorely  missed  during  the  past  ten  days,  and 


174  TEDDY 

Theodora  tried  to  talk  as  blithely  as  usual, 
while  she  told  herself  again  and  again  that  her 
opportunities  for  such  walks  were  growing 
few. 

"  Lessons  to-morrow,"  Billy  said  at  length. 
"  I  've  got  to  grind  in  earnest  now,  Ted,  if  I  'm 
to  be  ready  for  Yale,  next  year.  Old  Brownie 
has  promised  to  put  me  through,  though." 

"  I  wish  I  were  going,  too." 

«  To  Yale  ?  But  you  '11  do  better  ;  you  '11 
write  books  and  get  famous,  while  I  'm  racket 
ing  around  New  Haven.  By  the  way,  you  're 
going  to  bring  it  over,  to-night." 

"  It  ?  "  Theodora  tried  to  look  as  if  she  failed 
to  catch  his  meaning. 

"  The  great  and  only  IT,  —  the  novel.  What 's 
its  name  ? " 

"  I  'm  not  sure.  But  I  '11  bring  it,  in  a  day  or 
two,"  she  answered. 

It  was  not  until  the  following  Saturday  morn 
ing,  however,  that  she  appeared  at  the  Farring- 
tons'  with  a  bulky  parcel  of  papers  in  her 
hands. 

"  I  knew  your  mother  was  going  to  be  out, 
this  morning,"  she  said,  as  she  slid  out  of  her 
dripping  mackintosh ;  "  so  I  thought  I  'd  get  it 
over  with." 


HER   BOOK  175 


"  That 's  good.  Take  the  big  chair.  Wait  a 
minute,  though." 

He  whistled  for  Patrick  to  put  more  wood  on 
the  fire,  and  to  place  a  glass  of  water  within 
Theodora's  reach. 

"  There  !"  he  said  approvingly.  "  Now  we  're 
comfortable.  Hold  on  a  minute,  Patrick  ;  just 
boost  me  over  to  the  sofa,  while  you  're  about  it. 
I  may  as  well  take  life  easily." 

Theodora  stuffed  the  cushions  about  him  with 
the  swift,  sure  touch  he  knew  so  well,  and  he 
nodded  blithely  up  at  her,  in  thanks. 

"  Oli,  but  it 's  good  you  're  back,  Ted !  "  he  said 
gratefully.  "  I  've  missed  you  like  thunder.  Now 
fire  ahead.  What  are  you  going  to  call  it  ?" 

Theodora  blushed,  and  the  name  stuck  in 
her  throat. 

"  I  thought  I  should  call  it  In  the  Furnace  of 
Affliction"  she  said  hesitatingly. 

"  Wow  !     How  doleful !  " 

"  Don't  you  like  it  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  It's  rather  taking,  only  it  isn't  exactly  fes 
tive,"  he  answered. 

"  Neither  is  the  story,  I  suspect,"  she  said, 
laughing  a  little  nervously. 

"  Go  on,"  he  said  so  imperatively  that,  with 
one  long  breath,  Theodora  began  to  read. 


176  TEDDY 

It  was  more  than  two  hours  before  she  finished 
her  story,  and  during  that  time  Billy's  atten 
tion  and  respect  never  failed  her.  There  were 
moments  when  his  gravity  was  sorely  tried,  for, 
more  mature  than  Theodora,  and,  by  stress  of 
circumstances,  far  more  at  home  in  the  world  of 
books,  he  realized  all  the  unconscious  humor 
of  some  of  the  overdrawn  scenes  and  melo 
dramatic  conversations.  Still,  his  loyalty  to 
Theodora  would  not  let  him  waver,  and,  in  spite 
of  its  crudeness,  he  was  honestly  surprised  at 
some  of  the  really  telling  points  of  the  story. 

u  It  is  good,  Ted,"  he  said,  as  she  dropped  the 
last  page  into  her  lap.  "  It  is  n't  quite  up  to 
Treasure  Island  or  Ivanhoe  ;  but  it 's  as  good  as 
half  the  rubbish  that  gets  published,  and  some 
of  it  is  most  awfully  fine.  I  like  that  scene 
where  Violet  and  Marianne  tell  each  other  their 
love  affairs.  Girls  talk  just  like  that,  you 
know." 

"You  really  think  it  is  worth  publishing?" 
she  questioned,  while  her  color  came  and  went. 

"  I  most  certainly  do.  Chop  it  down  a  little 
and  copy  it  out,  and  then  send  it  to  a  man." 

"  But  I  don't  want  to  cut  it,"  she  protested. 

"  It 's  too  long,"  Billy  urged,  with  more  practi 
cality  than  tact. 


HER   BOOK  177 


"  Not  a  bit.  It 's  no  longer  than  Robert  Els- 
mere,  and  everybody  has  read  that." 

"Have  you?" 

"  No ;  but  I  counted  the  pages  and  words  and 
things.  This  is  n't  long  a  bit,  Billy." 

The  discussion  was  never  ended,  for  just 
then  Patrick  came  into  the  room. 

"  The  expressman  has  been  here,  Mr.  "Will." 

"  And  has  brought  the  tricycle  ?  Hurray  !  " 
And  Billy  seized  his  crutches.  "  Where  is  it  ? 
Help  me  up,  Patrick  !  Come  along,  Ted  ! " 

"I  had  it  taken  into  the  kitchen.  Shall  I 
open  it,  sir  ?  " 

"  Of  course.  Hurry  up  about  it,  too.  Did 
anything  else  come  ? " 

"  Yes  ;  but  not  here,  sir." 

With  a  little  feeling  of  envy,  Theodora  fol 
lowed  Billy  to  the  kitchen  and  stood  by,  while 
Patrick  opened  the  crate  and  took  out  the  light 
tricycle  so  carefully  packed  within. 

"  Is  n't  it  a  beauty  ?  Is  n't  it  fine  ?  Oh,  why 
does  it  have  to  be  raining,  Ted,  so  I  can't  try  it  ? 
Put  me  into  the  thing,  Patrick.  This  floor  is  so 
large  that  I  can  see  how  it  is  going  to  work." 

The  story  and  even  Theodora  herself  was  for 
gotten,  while  the  boy  grasped  the  handles  and 
rolled  himself  up  and  down  the  floor.  For  the 
12 


178  TEDDY 

moment,  he  was  half  beside  himself  with  joy 
It  was  as  if  his  prison  door  suddenly  had  opened, 
after  having  been  closed  and  barred  for  more 
than  a  year.  After  months  of  the  stuffy  couch, 
after  months  more  of  Patrick  and  the  chair,  it 
was  good  to  be  able  to  move  himself  about,  once 
more.  But  he  was  weaker  than  he  knew,  and 
the  excitement  was  more  than  he  had  the 
strength  to  endure.  Theodora,  who  had  been 
watching  him,  saw  him  grow  a  little  white 
around  the  mouth. 

"  Take  me  out,  Patrick,"  he  said  wearily.  "  I 
sha'n't  run  away,  to-day.  I  think,  if  you  don't 
mind,  I'll  get  back  on  the  lounge  again." 

Theodora  lingered  beside  him  until  he  was 
his  usual  bright  self  once  more.  Then  she 
started  for  home.  Allyn  met  her  on  the  steps. 

"  Turn  in,"  he  said  imperiously. 

"What  for?" 

"  'Cause.     Hope  said  I  was  n't  to  tell." 

"  Tell  what  ?  " 

"  Sumfin  's  here." 

"What  kind  of  a  sumfin,  Allyn  ?  Wait  till 
sister  gets  her  mackintosh  off." 

"  No  ;  turn."     He  tugged  at  her  hand. 

Laughing  at  his  eagerness,  she  threw  off  her 
mackintosh,  caught  him  in  her  arms,  and  went 


HER  BOOK  179 


in  the  direction  of  the  voices  which  she  heard 
in  a  confused,  excited  murmur.  As  she  opened 
the  door,  she  was  saluted  with  a  chorus. 

"  Here  she  is  !  " 

"Oh,  Ted,  just  look!" 

"  Now  she  won't  speak  to  the  rest  of  us." 

"  Teddy,  do  see  here  !  " 

She  looked  and  saw.  Then,  regardless  of 
Allyn  in  her  arms,  she  cast  herself  into  the 
middle  of  the  group  and  seized  upon  something 
that  stood  there,  —  something  with  a  gleam  of 
black  enamel  and  a  flash  of  nickel  and  the  lustre 
of  polished  wood. 

"Oh,  Hu!  Mamma!  Hope!  What  is  it? 
Where  did  it  come  from  ? " 

"  The  expressman  left  it  here,  addressed  to 
you,  Teddy  ;  and  here 's  a  note  in  Mrs.  Farring- 
ton's  writing,  tied  to  the  bar." 

Theodora  snatched  the  note  and  broke  the 
dainty  seal,  but  it  was  a  moment  before  she 
could  realize  the  meaning  of  what  was  written 
within. 

"  MY  DEAR  TEDDY,"  it  ran  ;  "  Will  is  so  happy 
in  his  tricycle ;  but  I  knew  it  would  n't  be  quite 
perfect  unless  you  had  the  mate  to  it.  He  is  so 
used  to  going  with  you,  in  his  chair,  that  I  am 
sure  he  would  miss  you,  now  he  can  go  alone. 


180  TEDDY 

Will  you  accept  this  bicycle  from  us  both,  dear, 
and  remember  that  we  give  it  to  you,  not  because 
you  have  been  so  kind  to  Will,  but  because  we 
care  so  very  much  for  your  dear  little  self  ? 
"  Sincerely, 

JESSIE  FARRINGTON." 

"  My  !  "  Phebe  commented,  when  Theodora 
folded  up  the  note.  "  I  wish  I  had  somebody 
to  be  good  to,  Teddy  McAlister.  I'd  like  to 
earn  a  bicycle  as  easy  as  you  have." 


HER  BOOK  181 


CHAPTER  FIFTEEN 

FOR  a  week,  Theodora  gave  herself  over  to 
the  most  violent  gymnastics  she  had  ever 
known.  For  a  week,  she  toiled  and  perspired 
and  suffered  and  was  strong.  Day  after  day,  she 
patiently  indented  the  floor  and  walls  of  the  rid 
ing  school  with  every  possible  variety  of  tumble 
known  to  aspiring  humanity.  Night  after  night, 
she  counted  her  bruises  and  anointed  them  with 
liniments.  She  tore  her  clothes,  and  knocked 
the  skin  off  one  side  of  her  nose,  and  rasped  her 
temper.  At  the  end  of  the  week  she  emerged, 
chastened  and  humbled,  yet  triumphant.  She 
could  ride  her  bicycle. 

The  whole  family  came  out  on  the  lawn  to  see 
her  mount.  No  one  of  them  but  Hubert  had 
ever  mastered  the  intricacies  of  a  wheel,  and, 
in  consequence,  they  were  loud  in  their  advice. 

"Why  don't  you  ride  here  on  the  grass?" 
Hope  suggested.  "  Then  it  won't  be  so  hard,  if 
you  fall  off." 

"  I  don't  mean  to  fall,"  Theodora  protested. 
"  Besides,  it 's  all  down  hill." 


182  TEDDY 

"  Huh  ! "  Phebe  sniffed  with  scorn.  ';  It 's 
easy  enough  to  ride  down  hill.  I  should  think 
anybody  could  do  that ;  should  n't  you,  Isabel  ?  " 

But  Isabel,  who  knew  how  to  ride,  prudently 
forbore  to  express  an  opinion. 

"  Where  are  you  going,  Theodora  ? "  Mrs. 
McAlister  called  after  her. 

"  Out  here,  where  the  road  is  better." 

"  But  we  want  to  see  you  start." 

"  It 's  sandy  here." 

"  What  difference  does  that  make  ?  " 

"  Why,  I  can't  push  through  such  sand  as 
that." 

"  How  strange  !  I  always  thought  you  were 
so  strong." 

Theodora  clashed  her  bell  in  a  spirit  of  wild 
protest. 

"  How  can  I  do  anything,  with  you  all  stand 
ing  here  to  criticise  me  ?  " 

"  Oh,  Teddy,  how  selfish  !  "  Hope's  tone  was 
rebuking. 

"  I  don't  care.  Do  go  in !  "  she  said  petulantly, 
as  she  started  to  mount. 

"  Can't  you  mount  any  better  than  that,  after 
all  those  lessons  ?  "  Phcbe  asked,  a  moment  later, 
as  Theodora  picked  herself  up  from  beneath  her 
wheel.  "  I  know  I  could  do  better  than  that." 


HER  BOOK  183 


"Try  it,  then."  Theodora  faced  her  little  sis 
ter  hotly. 

Phebe  drew  back. 

"  I  'm  —  I  'm  going  to  the  post-office  with 
Isabel,  and  her  mother  told  us  to  hurry." 

Allyn  added  his  voice  to  the  chorus. 

"  Wait,"  he  proclaimed ;  "  I  wants  to  talk. 
Phebe  spokes  so  much,  she  takes  up  all  the 
room." 

"  What  now,  Allyn  ? "  Hope  inquired. 

"  Teddy  tumbled  over,"  he  returned  gravely. 
"I  should  fink  she  could  ride  now,  and  not 
tumble  over  so  much." 

There  was  a  silence,  while  Theodora  wrestled 
with  her  feelings  and  her  wheel.  Then  Hubert's 
voice  rang  down  from  an  upper  window,  clear 
and  encouraging,  — 

"  Try  it  again,  Ted.  You  're  all  right,  only 
you  don't  know  it." 

She  did  try  it  again,  and  went  reeling  down 
the  street  and  in  at  the  Farringtons'  gate,  where 
Billy  met  her  with  applause.  The  more  stable 
nature  of  his  own  machine  had  allowed  him  to 
master  it  at  once,  and  now  he  was  only  waiting 
for  Theodora,  that  they  might  start  forth  to 
gether  and  conquer  the  world. 

The  days  flew  by,  each  one  more  perfect  than 


184  TEDDY 

the  last.  In  the  golden  May  weather,  when  the 
world  never  looks  more  green  and  fresh  and  lov 
able  than  in  its  yellow  sunshine,  they  rode  forth 
to  take  their  places  in  the  young  life  about 
them.  It  was  scarcely  more  new  to  Billy  than 
to  Theodora.  Everything  wears  a  changed  as 
pect  when  viewed  from  the  saddle,  and  the  girl 
felt  that  never  before  had  she  seen  in  its  full 
beauty  the  miracle  of  the  opening  leaves.  For 
a  few  days,  Dr.  McAlister  watched  Billy  with 
some  degree  of  care,  fearful  lest  he  be  led  too 
far  by  his  new  enthusiasm,  and  exhaust  his 
strength.  Then  the  doctor  breathed  a  sigh  of 
relief.  Billy  throve  under  it  as  a  true  boy 
should  do,  and,  from  week  to  week,  he  gained 
new  vigor  as  fast  as  he  gained  new  sunburn. 

Hubert,  meanwhile,  was  passing  through  an 
ignominious  experience.  He  was  having  mea 
sles.  Alone  of  all  the  McAlisters,  he  had  con 
trived  to  escape  the  epidemic  of  two  years 
before.  Even  Allyn  had  had  it,  and  Billy  Far- 
rington  counted  his  convalescence  as  among  the 
golden  memories  of  his  boyhood,  no  school  and 
endless  goodies.  For  Hubert,  sixteen  years  old 
and  live  feet,  ten  inches,  in  height,  it  was  re 
served  to  go  through  the  disease  alone.  He  was 
not  seriously  ill ;  but  his  whole  soul  revolted  at 


HER  BOOK  185 


the  babyish  nature  of  his  complaint,  and  at  the 
tedium  of  the  darkened  room. 

"  Where  going,  Ted  ? "  he  demanded,  one  day. 

"  To  ride  with  Billy." 

"  Bother  Billy  !     I  hate  him." 

"  What  for  ? "  Theodora  stared  at  her  brother 
in  open-eyed  consternation. 

"  Because  he  's  always  round  in  the  way. 
You  are  n't  good  for  anything,  now  he 's  here, 
always  running  off  with  him,"  Hubert  grumbled. 

"  Poor  Billy !  How  'd  you  like  it  not  to  be 
able  to  go  out  alone  ?  He  needs  me." 

"  I  can't  go  out  at  all." 

"  But  he 's  been  so  for  more  than  a  year," 
Theodora  said  sharply ;  "  and  you  have  only 
been  in  the  house  four  days.  I  should  think 
you  could  stand  that." 

"  I  should  think  you  could  stay  in,  once  in  a 
while,  with  your  own  brother,"  Hubert  retorted. 
"  Charity  begins  at  home." 

"  But  I  promised  Billy  —  " 

"  I  don't  want  you.  Do  get  out  and  let  me 
alone." 

As  a  rule,  Hubert  was  the  most  even-tem 
pered  of  boys.  Now,  however,  he  felt  himself 
aggrieved  and  deserted,  and  his  tone  was  not 
altogether  amicable. 


186  TEDDY 

"  How  cross  you  are  !  "  Theodora  snapped. 

"  Oh,  get  out !  "  And  Hubert  turned  his  back 
on  his  sister  and  yawned. 

The  door  closed  with  a  bang,  and  he  heard 
Theodora's  feet  descending  the  stairway,  with  a 
vengeful  thump  on  every  step.  Then  he  yawned 
again.  There  was  nothing  on  earth  to  do  ;  he 
was  not  ill  enough  to  make  it  interesting,  only 
a  bore.  Time  was  when  Theodora  would  have 
stuck  to  him  like  a  burr,  and  they  would  have 
contrived  to  have  some  fun  out  of  even  such  un 
toward  circumstances  as  this.  Now  she  deserted 
him  and  went  off  with  that  confounded  Billy. 
At  this  point  in  his  musings,  he  dropped  to 
sleep. 

In  the  mean  time,  Billy  was  having  a  bad 
afternoon  of  it.  Never  had  he  seen  Theodora 
in  a  more  fractious  mood.  She  scolded  about 
the  road  and  the  heat,  snubbed  all  his  sympa 
thetic  suggestions,  and  contradicted  all  his 
efforts  at  conversation.  Under  such  conditions, 
the  ride  was  a  short  one,  and  it  was  less  than 
an  hour  from  the  time  they  had  started  that 
they  reappeared  in  the  Farringtons'  drive. 
Theodora  refused  all  invitation  to  stop. 

"  Thanks  ;  but  I  must  get  home,"  she  said 
curtly,  and  she  rode  away  with  her  teeth  set 


HER   BOOK  187 


and  her  chin  aggressively  in  the  air,  leaving 
Billy  with  the  impression  that  he  had  uninten 
tionally  stepped  into  a  hornets'  nest. 

Hope  was  spending  the  day  with  a  friend,  and 
Mrs.  McAlister  was  superintending  some  belated 
house-cleaning,  so  that  Hubert  was  alone,  as 
when  she  had  left  him.  She  ran  directly  up  to 
his  room  ;  but,  when  she  saw  that  he  was  asleep, 
her  step  softened,  and  she  stealthily  advanced  to 
his  side  and  sat  down  on  the  edge  of  the  bed. 
Something  of  the  mood  in  which  he  had  gone  to 
sleep  still  remained,  and  his  boyish  face,  even  in 
his  dreams,  was  dull  and  unhappy.  Theodora 
reproached  herself,  as  she  sat  looking  down  at 
him.  She  reproached  herself  more,  while  she 
looked  about  at  the  disorderly  room  and  recalled 
her  mother's  words,  as  they  left  the  dinner- 
table,  that  noon. 

"  I  shall  be  busy,  this  afternoon,  Teddy,  so  I 
shall  leave  Hu  in  your  care." 

A  vase  of  fading  flowers  stood  on  the  table, 
and  beside  it  was  a  plate  of  half-eaten  fruit. 
Odds  and  ends  of  clothing  lay  about,  and  the 
bed  on  which  he  had  thrown  himself  looked 
tumbled  and  unattractive.  It  seemed  impossible 
that,  since  the  morning,  a  room  could  get  into 
such  a  state  of  dire  disorder. 


188  TEDDY 

Rising,  she  crept  softly  about  the  room,  set 
ting  things  to  rights  and  giving  the  place  the 
look  of  feminine  daintiness  which  she  knew  so 
well  how  to  impart.  Not  even  Hope  had  so 
much  of  the  true  home-making  instinct  as 
Theodora,  when  she  chose  to  turn  her  wayward 
interest  in  that  direction ;  and  within  a  few 
moments  the  room  looked  a  different  place 
altogether. 

Hubert  stirred  slightly,  and  Theodora  whisked 
her  duster  out  of  sight  and  went  back  to  the 
bed. 

"  Hu,  I  'm  awfully  sorry,"  she  said, in  explosive 
contrition.  "  I  never  meant  to  be  so  piggable." 

The  memory  of  their  brief  passage  at  arms 
had  faded  from  Hubert's  mind,  and  he  answered, 
with  a  yawn,  — 

"  What  do  you  mean  ? " 

"  About  leaving  you  and  going  off  with  Billy. 
Really,  Hu,  I  did  n't  s'pose  you  cared,  and  Billy 
was  used  to  me,  and  —  I  rather  guess  I  've  been 
a  good  deal  selfish ;  but  I  won't,  any  more." 

"  Why,  Ted  ! "  For  her  head  had  dropped  on 
his  shoulder,  and  he  felt  the  hot  tears  falling  on 
his  wrist. 

"  I  like  you  so  much  better,  Hu.  You  're  my 
twin,  and  there  's  nobody  like  you,  and  to  think 


HER  BOOK  189 


I  left  you  all  alone ! "     In  her  excitement,  the 
tears  came  fast. 

"  Ted,  don't  be  silly  !  Look  up,  old  girl !  I 
don't  want  you  hanging  round  here  with  me. 
I  '11  be  out  of  this  in  a  week,  anyway." 

"  I  know  that,  Hu."  Theodora  raised  her 
head  and  spoke  proudly.  "  But  you  're  my  twin 
and  my  other  half,  better  than  all  the  Billys  in 
creation,  and  I  ought  to  stay  with  you.  What 's 
more,  I  don't  mean  to  go  off  again  till  you  can 
go  with  me.  Billy  is  Billy,  and  good  fun ;  but 
you  —  "  she  cuddled  her  head  against  him  with 
one  of  her  rare  demonstrations  of  affection  — 
"  are  my  Hu." 

"  I'm  sorry,  Billy,"  she  said,  that  evening; 
"  but  I  can't  go  out  with  you,  to-morrow.  Hu  's 
shut  up  in  the  house,  and  I  don't  think  it  is 
quite  fair  to  leave  him,  all  the  time." 

"  Leave  him,  half  the  time,  then,"  Billy 
suggested. 

Theodora  shook  her  head. 

"  Hu  stands  first,  Billy ;  and  I  must  look  out 
for  him  when  he  's  ill." 

Loyally  she  kept  her  word,  and,  for  the  next 
week,  she  was  Hubert's  constant  attendant  and 
slave.  He  lorded  it  over  her  and  played  with  her 
by  turns  ;  but  he  appreciated  the  sacrifice  she  was 


190  TEDDY 

making  for  him  and,  more  than  he  realized,  he 
enjoyed  the  return  to  their  old  intimate  relation. 
It  was  not  that  he  was  jealous  of  Billy.  It  was 
not  that  Billy  had  intentionally  come  between 
them.  There  had  been  a  time,  however,  when 
the  twins  were  all  in  all  to  each  other.  Then 
Theodora's  horizon  had  suddenly  broadened  to 
admit  Billy.  Among  his  many  boy  friends, 
Hubert  had  found  no  one  with  whom  he  could 
be  on  correspondingly  intimate  terms.  He 
frankly  avowed  that  he  liked  no  one  else  so  well 
as  Teddy,  and  he  had  been  a  little  hurt  to  find 
that  he  apparently  no  longer  occupied  a  similar 
place  in  her  affections.  But,  whatever  danger 
there  had  been  of  their  drifting  apart,  Hubert's 
opportune  attack  of  measles  seemed  to  have 
vanquished  it,  and  the  twins  stood  more  firmly 
than  ever  before  upon  their  old  footing  of 
mutual  and  unrivalled  intimacy. 

Two  days  after  Hubert  went  out  of  doors  for 
the  first  time,  Billy  appeared  at  the  McAlisters', 
demanding  Theodora.  She  was  long  in  present 
ing  herself ;  and,  when  she  came  down,  her  face 
was  flushed  and  her  lips  a  little  unsteady. 

"Hullo,   Ted!     Come  for  a  ride?" 

"  Don't  feel  like  it." 

"Whv  not?" 


HER  BOOK  191 


"  My   head   aches. " 

"The  air  will  do  it  good.      It's  a  fine  day. 
Come  on." 

"  But  I  can't." 

Billy  looked  perplexed. 

"  What 's  the  row,  Ted  ?  Have  I  done  any 
thing  ? " 

"  Of  course  not." 

"  What  is  it  ?     Something  's  wrong." 

She  hesitated  a  moment. 

"Nothing,  only  my  story  has  come  back." 

"The  mischief!     When?" 

«  To-day." 

"What  for?" 

"  He  said  't  was  crude  and  sensational,  and 
the  work  of  a  child." 

"  The  old  beast !     Truly,  Ted,  I  'm  so  sorry." 

"  So  am  I ;  but  crying  won't  mend  matters." 

"  Send  it  to  mamma's  friend  in  New  York," 
he  suggested  kindly. 

"  And  be  pulled  through  by  force  ?  Not 
much,  Billy  Farrington  !  If  my  story  won't  go 
of  itself,  I  won't  have  any  friends  at  court  help 
ing  me  on.  Some  day,  I  am  going  to  write  a 
novel  that  will  be  worth  taking.  Till  then,  I 
won't  be  helped  out  on  poor  work.  Wait  a 
minute.  I  will  go  to  ride,  after  all." 


192  TEDDY 

Billy  sat  looking  after  her,  as  she  went  away 
in  search  of  her  hat. 

"  She  has  good  grit,"  he  observed  to  himself  ; 
"  and  I  believe  she  '11  get  there,  some  time  or 
other." 


HER   BOOK  193 


CHAPTER   SIXTEEN 

"  T)UT  it  would  be  such  fun,  papa,"  Theodora 

-L*     said,  with  a  suspicion  of  a  pout. 

"  It 's  too  far,  Teddy.  It  must  be  twenty 
miles  each  way." 

"  I  rode  thirty,  yesterday." 

"  I  think  that  is  too  far  for  you." 

"  Oh,  please." 

"  We  could  take  the  train  back,  if  Ted  should 
get  used  up,"  Hubert  suggested. 

"  Yes,  only  it 's  going  to  be  such  lovely 
moonlight." 

"  Then  take  the  train  over  and  ride  back," 
Hubert  amended.  "  Truly,  papa,  I  think  Ted 
could  do  it.  She  rides  like  an  Indian." 

"  I  did  n't  know  that  Indians  had  taken  to 
bicycles,"  Mrs.  McAlister  said,  with  a  smile. 

"  Like  a  tomboy,  then." 

"  That 's  not  polite,"  Theodora  protested. 

"  Never  mind  ;  it 's  true.  But  can't  we  try  it, 
papa?  Aunt  Alice  is  always  asking  us  to  come 
over  to  see  her,  and  this  is  such  a  splendid 

13 


194  TEDDY 

chance,  before  I  go  back  into  school,  or  it  gets 
too  warm.  We  can  ride  over,  Friday  morning, 
stay  all  day,  and  come  back  at  night.  The  twi 
lights  are  long,  at  this  season,  and  the  moon  will 
be  full." 

Hubert's  persuasion  carried  the  day,  and  the 
doctor  gave  a  reluctant  permission.  Three  days 
later,  the  twins  set  forth  on  their  ride.  Theo 
dora,  in  her  spotless  linen  suit  and  with  her 
pretty  wheel,  was  radiant  with  anticipations. 
It  was  her  first  all-day  trip  on  her  bicycle,  and 
she  felt  that  it  would  be  a  much  more  enjoyable 
experience  than  her  shorter  rides,  which,  for  the 
most  part,  had  been  beside  Billy's  tricycle.  In 
some  mysterious  manner  known  only  to  boys, 
Hubert  had  learned  to  ride  without  being  taught, 
and  an  occasional  spin  on  a  borrowed  wheel  was 
apparently  all  that  was  needed  to  keep  him  in 
perfect  training. 

The  whole  family  assembled  on  the  piazza  to 
see  them  start. 

"  You  'd  better  not  ride  back,"  Mrs.  McAliste- 
called  after  them.  "  If  you  are  at  all  tired, 
Teddy,  you  must  take  the  train." 

"  Yes,"  Theodora  said,  with  outward  obedience 
and  an  inward  resolve  not  to  be  at  all  tired. 

"  If  you  do  ride,  when  shall  you  get  home  ? " 


HER   BOOK  195 


the  doctor  asked.  "  Give  yourselves  plenty  of 
time,  only  set  some  limit,  so  that  we  sha'n't  be 
anxious." 

"  Hm,"  Theodora  said  thoughtfully.  "  Supper 
at  five,  start  at  six,  two  hours  to  ride,  and  an 
hour  for  delays.  We  '11  be  at  home  at  nine,  at 
the  latest." 

"  Very  well.  Say  half-past  nine,  then.  We 
won't  worry  till  then.  Take  care  of  yourselves 
and  have  a  good  time."  And  the  doctor 
flourished  his  napkin  in  farewell,  and  then  went 
back  to  his  breakfast. 

"  Dear  old  Daddy  !  "  Theodora  said,  while  she 
turned  in  her  saddle  to  look  back,  and  then 
waved  a  good-by  to  Billy  on  his  piazza.  "  He 
didn't  want  us  to  go.  I  do  hope  he  won't  be 
anxious." 

"  Don't  you  suppose  I  can  take  care  of  you, 
ma'am?"  Hubert  asked,  in  mock  indignation, 
and  Theodora  smiled  back  at  him  contentedly. 

The  day  was  hot  and  dusty,  and  the  roads 
more  sandy  than  they  had  supposed  possible,  so 
that  it  was  a  very  limp  and  demoralized  Theo 
dora  who  landed,  three  hours  later,  on  her  aunt's 
piazza.  Theodora  was  always  destructive  to  her 
toilets,  and  in  some  mysterious  manner  she  had 
parted  with  all  of  her  starch  and  most  of  her  neat- 


196  TEDDY 

ness,  in  the  course  of  the  last  nineteen  miles. 
Once  inside  the  cool,  dark  house,  with  a  glass  of 
lemonade  in  her  hand,  however,  Theodora  forgot 
the  discomforts  of  the  road. 

"  How  goes  it  with  you,  Ted  ? "  Hubert  asked, 
late  that  afternoon.  "  Shall  we  ride,  or  take 
the  train  ? " 

She  pointed  up  at  the  clear  sky,  broken  only  by 
a  few  fleecy  masses  of  cloud  on  the  western  horizon. 

"  Think  what  that  moon  will  be,  and  then 
ask  me  to  take  the  train  if  you  dare." 

"  Are  n't  you  tired  ? " 

"  Not  a  bit.  Don't  you  think  we  can  do  it, 
Hu?" 

He  laughed  at  her  spirit. 

"  All  right.  Don't  blame  me,  though,  if  you 
are  dead,  to-morrow." 

She  tossed  her  head  proudly. 

"  I  don't  die  so  easily  ;  but,  if  you  're  tired, 
we  '11  take  the  cars." 

They  had  planned  to  start  for  home  at  six  ; 
but  callers  delayed  the  supper,  and,  when  they 
finally  mounted,  the  moon  was  standing  out  in 
the  eastern  sky,  like  a  thick,  white  vapor. 
There  was  a  chorus  of  good-byes,  a  clashing  of 
two  bells,  and  the  twins  started  off  upon  their 
homeward  ride. 


HER  BOOK  197 


For  the  first  hour,  it  seemed  to  Theodora  that 
she  had  never  ridden  more  easily.  The  fatigue  of 
the  morning  had  worn  away,  leaving  only  the 
exhilaration  ;  and,  like  most  riders,  she  came  to 
her  best  strength  late  in  the  day.  Slowly  the  twi 
light  fell  about  them,  and,  as  the  golden  light  of 
the  sunset  died  away  in  the  west,  the  silver 
lustre  of  the  full  moon  brightened  the  eastern 
sky.  Theodora's  gown  was  damp  with  the 
falling  dew,  as  they  rolled  quietly  on  between 
fields  pale  with  sleepy  daisies  and  nodding 
buttercups.  One  by  one,  the  cows  in  the  pas 
tures  stopped  grazing  and  lay  down  to  rest; 
while,  above  their  heads,  the  birds  drowsily 
exchanged  sweet  good-nights.  Then  the  last 
glow  faded  from  the  west,  and  the  world  fell 
asleep. 

"  I  don't  half  like  those  clouds,  Ted,"  Hubert 
said  suddenly.  "  If  they  come  up  much  faster, 
they  '11  play  the  mischief  with  us  before  we  get 
home." 

"  Oh,  they  won't  do  any  harm,"  Theodora  said 
easily.  "  It  will  be  light  enough  to  ride  to 
night,  even  if  it  is  cloudy." 

"  But  we  have  that  long  stretch  of  woods,  you 
know." 

"  I  forgot  that."     Theodora  spoke  lower,  and 


198  TEDDY 

involuntarily  glanced  over  her  shoulder.  "  How 
far  is  it  ? " 

"  Five  miles.  That  won't  take  us  long,  and 
we  're  almost  there  now." 

"  Yes  ;  but  it 's  hilly  and  no  track  to  speak  of. 
Hurry,  Hu !  Let 's  ride  faster  and  get  through 
it  before  that  cloud  gets  over  the  moon.  1  wish 
we  had  lanterns." 

It  is  exciting  work  to  race  with  a  cloud. 
Vapors  are  unreliable  things  at  best,  and  are 
prone  to  roll  up  the  sky  with  fateful  swiftness. 
As  Hubert  and  Theodora  came  under  the  first 
of  the  trees,  the  cloud  came  above  them,  and  the 
moon  vanished.  Theodora  was  as  plucky  as  a 
girl  could  be ;  but  there  was  something  rather 
fearful  to  her  in  this  dark  and  lonely  road,  where 
she  and  Hubert  were  the  only  moving  objects, 
but  where  unknown  beings  might  lurk  in  every 
shadow,  ready  to  spring  out  and  drag  her  down 
to  the  earth.  The  formless  fear  lent  an  un 
steadiness  to  her  progress,  and  she  began  to 
wobble. 

"  How  dark  it  is  !  "  she  said,  in  an  odd,  con 
strained  little  voice.  "  It  must  be  very  late, 
Hu.  Can  you  see  your  watch  ? " 

"  It 's  not  light  enough." 

"  Have  n't  you  a  match  ? " 


HER  BOOK  199 


"  No." 

"  I  know  we  sha'n't  get  home  at  nine." 

"  We  have  till  half  past,  you  know.  Keep  up 
your  pluck,  Ted.  We  're  all  right.  Let 's  ride 
a  little  faster." 

Half-way  down  the  next  hill,  there  came  a 
clatter  and  a  bump,  followed  by  a  little  moan 
from  Theodora.  Hubert  sprang  to  the  ground 
and  ran  to  her  side. 

"  I  slipped  in  the  sand  and  had  a  fall,  a  bad 
one.  I  've  done  something  to  my  ankle." 

"  Is  it  sprained  ?  " 

"  I  'm  afraid  so." 

Leaning  heavily  on  his  arm,  she  scrambled  to 
her  feet. 

«  What  is  it,  Ted  ?     Shall  we  go  back  ? " 

She  shut  her  teeth  for  a  moment. 

"  No  ;  what 's  the  use  ? " 

"  Sha'n't  I  go  for  somebody  ? " 

"  Where  's  the  nearest  house  ?  " 

"  Two  miles  back." 

She  gave  a  little  sigh  of  pain.  Then  she  said 
steadily,  — 

"Take  the  wheels,  Hu,  and  let  me  walk  a 
little.  It 's  better  to  go  on,  and  perhaps  I  can 
ride,  if  I  get  quieted  down  a  little.  I  'm  sorry 
to  bo  a  baby,"  she  added  piteously  ;  "  but  it  does 
hurt  so." 


200  TEDDY 

"  Baby  !  You  !  "  Hubert  longed  to  pick  his 
sister  up  in  his  arms  and  carry  her  to  a  shelter ; 
but  it  was  impossible.  Worst  of  all,  he  dared 
not  openly  pity  her.  He  knew  that  she  was 
using  all  her  self-control  to  keep  from  crying 
with  the  pain,  and  that  a  single  sympathetic 
word  would  break  down  her  courage.  "  Good 
for  you,  Ted !  I  knew  you  had  the  sand  in 
you,"  was  all  he  ventured  to  say,  as  she  limped 
slowly  along  at  his  side. 

"  I  had  too  much  sand  under  me,"  she  an« 
swered,  with  a  giggle  which  threatened  to  become 
hysterical. 

The  next  mile  was  apparently  endless,  and 
Theodora,  as  she  looked  this  way  and  that  with 
stealthy,  fearful  glances,  felt  that  the  terrors  of 
the  darkness  almost  swallowed  up  the  pain  in 
her  ankle.  Underneath  the  rest,  moreover,  was 
the  anxiety  in  regard  to  the  delay.  She  knew 
the  strictness  of  her  father's  discipline  well 
enough  to  fear  his  displeasure  and  alarm,  when 
nine  o'clock  passed  and  half-past  nine,  and  still 
they  did  not  appear. 

Strange  to  say,  the  pain  in  her  foot  grew  less 
and  less  unbearable,  as  she  plodded  along  the 
sandy  road.  The  sand  was  everywhere  ;  it  filled 
her  shoes  and  made  each  step  drag  more  heavily. 


HER  BOOK  201 


She  felt  as  if  they  only  crawled  along,  as  if  the 
moments  raced  by  them  on  wings.  In  sheer 
desperation,  she  fell  to  counting  the  passing 
seconds,  that  she  might  form  some  notion  of 
their  progress.  Hubert  was  trudging  on  beside 
her,  whistling  softly  to  himself.  Like  a  true 
boy,  he  was  totally  oblivious  of  every  anxiety 
save  for  the  pain  which  his  sister  was  suffering, 
and  she  had  just  assured  him  that  that  was 
better. 

"  Let 's  mount,  Hu,"  she  said  desperately, 
when  it  seemed  to  her  that  they  had  walked  for 
several  miles. 

"Pretty  bad  here,  Ted.  Do  you  think  you 
can  ride  ? " 

"  I  will,"  she  answered  indomitably. 

She  mounted,  rode  for  a  hundred  yards,  and 
fell  again. 

"  That  slippery  sand !  "  she  said  petulantly. 
"  What  shall  we  do,  Hu  ?  We  must  ride,  and  I 
can't  find  the  path." 

"  You  're  rattled,  dear ;  and  I  can't  ride,  my 
self,  any  too  well.  Follow  me." 

How  patient  he  was !  Even  in  her  anxiety 
and  alarm,  Theodora  realized  all  the  kindly  care 
he  gave  her,  all  the  generosity  with  which  he 
tried  to  prevent  her  feeling  herself  a  drag  upon 


202  TEDDY 

his  freedom.  She  was  quite  unconscious  that 
she  had  earned  his  patience  by  showing  the  one 
quality  which  boys  too  rarely  find  in  their  girl 
companions,  the  lack  of  which  leads  them  to 
take  their  out-of-door  pleasures  alone.  Theo 
dora  rarely  grumbled ;  in  a  real  emergency,  she 
never  complained. 

It  had  seemed  to  the  girl  that  all  fun  had  died 
out  of  the  universe,  that  the  mental  outlook  was 
as  black  as  the  physical  one.  Ten  minutes  later, 
the  woods  echoed  with  shrieks  of  laughter,  — 
laughter  so  infectious  that  Hubert  laughed  in 
sympathy,  without  in  the  least  knowing  the 
cause.  The  sounds  came  from  some  distance 
back  of  him.  He  dismounted  and  ran  along  the 
road,  unable  to  see  his  sister,  and  guided  only  by 
her  voice,  which  appeared  to  proceed  from  a  bed 
of  tall  weeds  by  the  wayside. 

"  I  'm  here,  Hu,"  she  gasped. 

"  Where  in  thunder  ? "  He  parted  the  weeds 
at  the  edge  of  the  road  and  peered  in.  There 
on  her  back  lay  Theodora,  with  her  bicycle  on 
top  of  her. 

"  I  lost  my  pedals  and  could  n't  stop  till  I 
ran  into  these  weeds,"  she  explained  hysteri 
cally.  "  It  was  just  as  soft  as  a  bed,  and  I 
went  down,  down,  down,  and  landed  in  about 


HER   BOOK  203 


six  inches  of  water.  Pull  me  out,  Hu.  I  'm 
drowned." 

With  the  help  of  his  hand,  she  struggled  out 
and  stood  beside  him  in  the  road,  with  the  water 
dripping  from  her  short  skirt.  Just  then,  the 
clouds  parted,  and  the  moon,  slanting  down 
through  the  trees,  fell  upon  her  bedraggled  fig 
ure.  The  brother  and  sister  looked  at  each 
other  in  silence  for  a  moment.  Then  they  burst 
into  a  shout  of  laughter.  It  was  the  best  tonic 
they  could  have  had,  and  Theodora's  courage 
rose  even  as  she  laughed. 

"  I  know  where  we  are  now,"  Hubert  said, 
while  he  looked  about  him  in  the  growing  light. 
"  The  good  road  is  just  ahead.  It 's  as  well 
't  is,  Ted,  for  you  '11  have  to  ride  like  the 
dickens,  to  keep  from  taking  cold." 

"  It 's  a  warm  night,"  she  answered  as  blithely 
as  she  had  spoken  to  her  father,  that  morn 
ing  ;  "  and  I  never  take  cold.  Come  on,  then. 
It 's  only  six  miles  more,  and  I  'm  ready  to 
spin." 

As  they  turned  in  at  the  gate,  the  hands  of 
the  town  clock  marked  ten  minutes  after  ten, 
and  Theodora's  spirits  fell  slightly.  They 
found  the  doctor  and  his  wife  playing  cribbage. 
The  doctor  looked  up  with  the  content  born 


204  TEDDY 

of  that  unwonted  luxury,  an  evening  quite  to 
himself. 

"  Home  so  early  ? "  he  said,  with  a  smile. 
"  Have  you  had  a  good  time  ?  I  've  really  en 
vied  you,  enjoying  all  this  superb  moonlight, 
when  we  old  folks  had  to  stay  indoors." 


HER  BOOK  205 


CHAPTER  SEVENTEEN 

OME  and  ride  with  me  this  morning, 
Ted." 

«  Can't." 

"Why  not?" 

"  I  'm  busy." 

"  That 's  what  you  said,  last  Saturday,  and 
week  before.  It 's  a  fine  morning,  and  I  do 
wish  you  'd  come.  I  've  a  headache,  and  I  want 
to  ride  it  off,  if  I  can."  Billy  took  off  his  cap, 
and  brushed  away  his  hair,  with  a  little  weary 
gesture  which  went  to  Theodora's  heart.  She 
was  not  discerning  enough  to  discover  that 
Billy's  headache  had  developed  under  the  inspi 
ration  of  the  moment,  so  sure  was  he  that  this 
was  the  most  certain  method  of  bringing  his 
friend  to  do  his  will. 

"  I  'm  so  sorry,  Billy,"  she  said  gently.  "  I 
do  want  to  go ;  but  I  must  go  somewhere  else 
this  morning." 

"  Let  me  go,  too,"  he  suggested.  "  I  'd  as 
soon  ride  one  way  as  another." 


206  TEDDY 

"  Oh,  no,"  she  said  hastily  ;  "  and  I  'm  not 
ready  yet.  Does  your  head  ache  very  badly, 
Billy  ? " 

"  Very,"  answered  the  deceiver,  assuming  the 
look  of  a  martyr.  "And  I  didn't  sleep  any, 
last  night." 

"  What  a  shame  !  Are  n't  you  well  ?"  Theo 
dora  sat  down  on  the  steps  and  gazed  so  steadily 
at  him  that  he  blushed. 

"  I  believe  you  're  shamming,  Billy,"  she  said 
sternly.  "  You  've  no  more  headache  than 
Mulvaney." 

He  laughed,  with  conscious  pleasure  in  his 
guilt. 

"  Well,  what  if  I  have  n't  ?  I  shall  have,  some 
day.  Really,  Ted,  what  is  the  reason  you  won't 
ride  with  me  ? " 

"  I  can't,  Billy ;  that 's  all  there  is  about  it. 
I  've  something  else  I  must  do." 

"  You  might  tell  me  what  it  is,"  he  observed 
persuasively. 

"  I  might,  but  I  won't."  Then  her  heart 
smote  her  at  sight  of  his  disappointed  face,  as 
he  turned  away.  "  Some  day,  Billy,"  she  called 
after  him. 

He  nodded,  as  he  pulled  off  his  cap.  Then 
he  left  her. 


HER  BOOK  207 


She  stood  looking  after  him,  as  he  went  roll 
ing  away  down  the  street.  It  was  good  to  see 
him  so  independent  with  his  new  tricycle.  He 
was  growing  almost  as  independent  in  the  use 
of  his  crutches,  and  his  life  was  quite  another 
thing  from  the  old  limited  existence  when  Theo 
dora  had  first  known  him.  But  through  it  all, 
in  gray  days  and  in  bright,  she  had  always  found 
him  the  same  Billy,  always  ready  to  enter  into 
her  interests,  from  which  of  necessity  he  had 
been  shut  out,  ready  to  give  her  a  share  in  his 
own  more  luxurious  existence.  In  a  sense,  he 
had  been  a  sort  of  fairy  godfather  to  Theodora, 
and  to  him  and  to  his  mother  she  owed  a  large 
part  of  her  pleasures  during  the  past  few 
months. 

How  would  he  take  the  news  of  this  last  ven 
ture  of  hers,  she  asked  herself.  Still,  he  was 
responsible,  indirectly  at  least,  if  not  for  the  fact 
itself,  yet  for  the  ambition  which  had  led  to  the 
fact.  Theodora's  brows  puckered  into  an  anx 
ious  frown  for  a  moment.  Then  they  cleared, 
and  she  hummed  lightly  to  herself,  as  she  stood 
looking  up  the  street  after  her  friend,  who  had 
long  since  disappeared  from  her  view.  It  would 
have  been  an  ideal  morning  for  a  ride,  she  knew, 
and  she  wished  she  might  have  gone  off  for  a 


208  TEDDY 

long  spin  over  the  country  roads.  Still,  her 
face  wore  a  very  contented  expression  as  she 
turned  away  and  entered  the  house. 

Going  up  to  her  room,  she  dressed  hastily  and 
ran  downstairs  again  to  the  closet  where  her 
bicycle  was  kept.  Fifteen  minutes  later,  she 
stopped  at  the  door  of  a  book  store.  There,  in 
stead  of  leaving  her  bicycle  outside,  she  coolly 
rolled  it  through  the  open  doorway  and  on  into 
a  room  at  the  back  of  the  shop,  where  she  also 
left  her  hat.  Then  she  came  back  to  the  desk, 
mounted  a  lofty  stool,  drew  a  heavy  book  towards 
her,  and  fell  to  work. 

She  had  gone  to  her  father's  office,  one  even 
ing,  a  little  more  than  a  week  before.  There 
chanced  to  be  no  patients,  but  Phebe  sat  read 
ing  before  the  fire. 

"  I  want  to  talk  to  papa,  Phebe,"  she  said. 

"  Talk  away,  then."  And  Phebe  returned  to 
her  book. 

tl  But  it 's  business." 

"  I  don't  care.     You  won't   disturb  me  any." 

"  'T  is  n't  that  I  'm  afraid  of.  I  want  to  see 
papa  alone." 

"  You  '11  have  to  wait,  then." 

"  Please  go,  Phebe." 

"  Sha'n't.  I  was  here  first."  Phebe  yawned, 
and  nestled  deeper  into  her  chair. 


HER  BOOK  209 


"  Babe,  I  think  you  will  have  to  make  way  for 
Teddy,"  the  doctor  said,  laughing.  "  You  can 
read  just  as  well  somewhere  else,  and  if  Teddy 
really  wants  to  talk  —  " 

"  I  do,  papa,"  she  urged  eagerly. 

Phebe  retired,  grumbling. 

"What  is  it,  my  girl  ?"  the  doctor  asked,  as 
Theodora  perched  herself  on  the  arm  of  his 
chair. 

"  I  want  my  own  way,  as  usual,  papa,  and  I 
want  you  to  stand  up  for  me  when  the  others 
howl,"  she  answered  coaxingly. 

"  Howl  ?     Do  they  usually  howl  at  you  ?  " 

"  Not  literally,  of  course,  and  not  half  as  much 
as  I  deserve.  But  then,  I  want  moral  support." 

«  What  now  ?  " 

"  I  want  —  "  Theodora  paused  impressively  — 
"  I  want  to1  go  to  college,  and  I  want  to  go  into 
business." 

The  doctor  smiled. 

"  Well,  my  aspiring  daughter,  and  which  will 
be  your  choice  ?  " 

"  Both  ;  one  for  the  sake  of  the  other.  It  is 
this  way ;  I  want  to  go  to  Smith.  It  is  the  best 
place  for  me,  and  I  do  want  to  go  more  than 
you've  any  idea.  You  don't  disapprove,  do 


you?" 


14 


210  TEDDY 

"  Not  if  it  can  be  arranged,"  he  answered 
thoughtfully.  "  But  what  has  started  you  on 
this  so  suddenly,  Teddy  ? " 

"  It  is  n't  so  sudden  as  it  seems  ;  but  I  did  n't 
want  to  talk  about  it  too  soon.  You  see,  mamma 
and  Mrs.  Farrington  both  are  college  women, 
and  their  talk  makes  me  half  wild  to  go.  Billy 
goes,  next  year,  and  I  shall  be  all  ready  to  enter 
at  the  same  time.  Should  you  mind  very 
much  ? " 

"  I  should  hate  to  lose  you  for  four  long  years, 
Ted." 

"  That 's  only  a  little  while,  and  there  are 
vacations  and  things,  you  know.  That  is  only 
one  side.  The  other  is  the  expense,  and  that 's 
what  worries  me.  Hubert  will  be  ready,  the 
year  after,  and  you  can't  afford  to  send  us  both." 

"  It  would  be  a  tug  ;  but  it  might  be  done," 
Dr.  McAlister  said  thoughtfully.  "  Besides,  I  'm 
not  at  all  sure  that  Hu  will  care  to  go.  If  you 
are  more  anxious  for  college  than  he,  you  ought 
to  have  the  chance." 

"  He  must  go  if  he  wants  to,"  she  responded 
energetically.  "  I  've  set  my  heart  on  his  going. 
He 's  a  boy,  too,  and  should  have  first  chance, 
if  he  wants  it.  It  is  more  necessary  for  a  boy. 
But  what  if  I  were  to  begin  to  save  up  my  money 


HER  BOOK  211 


for  my  expenses,  so  I  could  pay  part  ?  Then 
may  I  go  ?  " 

"  How  ?  You  don't  seem  to  me  to  be  rolling 
in  wealth,  Teddy." 

She  shook  her  head  gayly. 

"  Oh,  but  you  don't  know.  That's  where  the 
business  part  comes  in." 

The  doctor  looked  rather  anxious. 

"  What  is  it  now,  Ted  ?  " 

"  It 's  Mr.  Huntington,  down  in  the  book  store. 
He  has  sent  off  his  book-keeper,  and  he  wants 
somebody  to  come  in,  every  Saturday  morning, 
to  write  up  his  accounts  and  things.  Every 
month,  it 's  all  day,  and  he  pays  ever  so  much 
for  it." 

"  But  can  you  do  it  ?     Will  he  take  you  ? " 

She  nodded. 

"  You  don't  know  how  valuable  I  am,  papa. 
Mr.  Huntington  is  a  dear  old  man.  I  heard 
about  it  and  went  to  see  him.  He  made  me 
write  for  him  and  do  some  accounts  in  a  hurry  ; 
and  he  told  me  to  come  back,  last  Saturday,  to 
try.  To-day  he  told  me  I  could  have  the  place, 
if  I  'd  only  make  my  m's-  and  w's  and  w's  not  so 
much  alike."  Theodora  laughed  gleefully  at  her 
father's  astonished  face. 

There  was  a  pause,  while  the  doctor  reflected 


212  TEDDY 

rapidly.  Theodora  was  very  young  to  enter  into 
any  such  venture  as  this,  and  there  was  no  real 
need  of  her  doing  anything  of  the  kind.  On 
the  other  hand,  her  father  approved  of  business 
habits  for  women  ;  he  liked  her  independence 
and  spirit,  and  he  felt  that  it  would  be  well  for 
her  to  learn  the  real  value  of  money.  He  knew 
Mr.  Huntington  well.  His  store  was  a  quiet, 
homelike  place,  where  Theodora  could  be  brought 
under  no  demoralizing  influences,  where  she 
would  be  likely  to  meet  only  refined,  book-loving 
people.  If  she  must  try  her  experiment,  this 
would  be  an  ideal  place  for  the  attempt. 

Theodora  eyed  him  askance,  trying  to  read 
his  thoughts.  Even  before  he  spoke,  she  knew 
his  decision,  and  she  seized  him  by  the  beard 
and  kissed  him  rapturously. 

"  Oh,  you  dear  man !  " 

"  But  I  have  n't  said  yes,"  he  protested. 

"  You  are  going  to  ;  your  eyes  show  it.  Oh, 
Papa  McAlister,  you  are  such  a  dear ! " 

"  Am  I  ?  Well,  my  girl,  you  shall  have  your 
way.  All  in  all,  I  think  your  little  plan  has  no 
harm  in  it.  I  was  thinking  of  something  else, 
though." 

"  Oh,  what  ?  " 

He  smiled  at  her  disappointed  face. 


HER  BOOK  213 


"Nothing  bad.  It  is  only  this.  If  your 
courage  holds  out,  and  if  you  cultivate  that 
crazy  handwriting  of  yours  a  little,  perhaps 
when  Sullivan  goes  to  Boston,  next  fall,  I  '11  see 
what  you  can  do  with  ray  bills.  I  can't  pay  as 
well  as  Mr.  Huntington ;  but  it  may  help  on  a 
little." 

"  Oh,  papa ! " 

Ten  minutes  later,  Theodora  looked  up  into 
her  father's  face.  Her  own  face  was  flushed, 
and  her  lips  were  unsteady. 

"  There  's  something  else,  papa." 

"  What  now,  my  girl  ?" 

She  drew  a  letter  from  her  pocket. 

"  It 's  not  much,  only  a  little  bit  of  a  beginning. 
Nobody  knows  it,  and  I  wanted  to  tell  you  first." 

He  took  the  letter,  opened  it  with  a  feigned 
curiosity,  more  to  gratify  her  whim  than  from 
any  real  interest  in  what  it  could  contain.  He 
read  it,  glanced  at  the  slip  of  paper  it  enclosed, 
then  bent  over  and  kissed  her  scarlet  cheek. 

"  My  girlie,  I  congratulate  you." 

It  was  a  letter  from  a  well-known  magazine 
for  children,  accepting  a  story  from  Miss  Theo 
dora  McAlister,  and  suggesting  that  another 
story  of  equal  merit  might  find  a  welcome,  later 
on  in  the  season. 


214  TEDDY 

For  the  next  three  weeks,  Theodora  kept  the 
secret  of  her  experiment  to  herself. 

"  It 's  all  right.  Papa  knows,"  was  all  the 
reply  she  could  be  induced  to  make  to  the  ques 
tions  which  assailed  her  from  all  sides,  in  regard 
to  the  way  she  was  spending  her  Saturday 
mornings. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  say  how  long  the 
mystery  would  have  been  kept  up  if  she  had  had 
her  own  way.  One  Saturday  noon,  however, 
Phebe  came  bouncing  into  the  dining-room,  her 
eyes  blazing  with  righteous  indignation  and  in 
jured  pride. 

"  Theodora  McAlister,  I  'm  ashamed  of  you, 
perfectly  ashamed  ! " 

"  You  've  said  so  before,"  Theodora  answered 
tranquilly,  while  she  went  on  eating  her  dinner. 
"  What  is  it,  this  time  ? " 

"You've  gone  into  a  store."  Phebe's  tone 
was  one  of  scathing  scorn. 

"  Yes.     What  of  it  ? " 

"  My  sister  a  clerk  in  a  common  store !  " 

"Yes,  in  Huntington's." 

"  But  it  might  have  been  a  grocery." 

"  It  might  have  been  an  undertaker's,"  Theo 
dora  answered  sharply.  "  I  don't  see  what  dif 
ference  it  makes  to  you." 


HER  BOOK  215 


"  Is  this  really  true,  Teddy  ? "  Mrs.  McAlister 
questioned. 

Theodora  glanced  about  her  at  the  astonished 
faces  of  her  family.  Surprise  and  disapproval 
seemed  to  be  meeting  her  on  every  hand.  Even 
Allyn  stopped  eating  his  bread  and  milk,  arid 
pointed  his  spoon  at  her  accusingly.  Then  she 
turned  to  her  father,  who  was  entering  the 
room. 

"  Phebe  has  just  found  out  about  Hunting- 
ton's,  papa,"  she  said,  with  brave  dignity.  "Are 
you  willing  to  tell  them  how  it  happened,  and 
why  I  did  it  ?  " 


216  TEDDY 


CHAPTER  EIGHTEEN 

!  Teddy  !  Theodora  McAlister  !  " 
Theodora  was  passing  the  Farringtons' 
grounds.  At  the  third  call,  she  looked  up. 
Billy,  on  the  piazza,  was  waving  his  cap  in  one 
hand  and  pounding  the  floor  with  one  of  his 
crutches  with  the  other. 

"  What 's  the  matter  ? "  she  called,  at  a  loss 
to  account  for  these  vigorous  demonstrations. 

"  Come  up,  and  I  '11  tell  you,"  he  shouted. 
"  Hurry  up  about  it,  too." 

"  Is  the  house  on  fire  ? "  she  demanded  in 
feminine  alarm,  as  she  turned  and  sped  across 
the  lawn. 

Billy  laughed  derisively. 

"  If  that  is  n't  just  like  a  girl !  It 's  nothing 
of  the  kind,  Ted ;  it 's  good  news." 

"  What  a  scare  you  gave  me,  you  sinner !  " 
She  dropped  down  on  the  step  below  him  and 
fanned  herself  with  her  hat,  for  it  was  noon  of 
an  August  day.  "  What  is  your  great  news, 
anyway  ?  " 

"  Uncle  Frank  is  sick  again." 


HER  BOOK  217 


"  But  I  thought  you  said  it  was  good  news," 
Theodora  said,  in  some  perplexity. 

"  So  't  is.  Wait  till  you  hear  the  rest  of  it. 
He  is  n't  dangerous,  only  comfortable  ;  but  the 
doctors  say  he  '11  die  unless  he  goes  up  into  the 
mountains.  He  won't  go  unless  mamma  goes, 
and  so  she  's  going." 

"  But  for  the  life  of  me,  I  don't  see  anything 
so  very  good  in  all  that,"  Theodora  said  again. 

"  It  is  very  solemn  and  serious  so  far,  for 
he 's  really  awfully  ill,  and  mamma  does  n't 
want  to  leave  me,  and  she  feels  that  it  is  her 
duty  to  go,"  Billy  answered,  trying  to  subdue 
the  rapture  written  in  every  line  of  his  face. 
"  Now  we  're  coming  to  the  good  part,  —  good  for 
me,  that  is,  for  I  don't  know  what  you  '11  say  to 
it.  She  is  going  to  be  away  for  six  weeks,  and 
I  'm  to  be  at  your  house." 

"  Oh,  Billy,  how  splendid !  "  Theodora's  tone 
left  no  doubt  of  her  sincerity.  "  When  are  you 
coming  ? " 

"  Day  after  to-morrow.  Mamma  had  a  letter, 
this  morning,  and  she  's  been  in  a  great  pickle 
about  it.  She  felt  she  ought  to  go,  for  there 
is  n't  anybody  else ;  but  she  could  n't  take  me. 
I  'm  not  up  to  mountain  climbing  just  yet,  and 
she  was  bound  she  would  n't  leave  me  alone. 


218  TEDDY 

Finally,  1  suggested  going  to  your  house,  and 
that  struck  her  as  a  good  scheme.  She  's  had  a 
long  session  with  your  father  and  mother,  and 
it 's  all  settled,  unless  you  veto  it." 

"  I  '11  be  likely  to.  Now  we  shall  have  a 
chance  to  work  on  our  play." 

"  And  to  develop  our  pictures,"  added  Billy, 
who  just  now  was  suffering  from  an  attack  of 
the  photographic  mania. 

"  Yes,  dozens  of  things.  We  can  do  so  much 
in  six  weeks." 

"  The  worst  of  it  is,"  Billy  remarked  pensively  ; 
"  I  'm  sure  to  have  such  a  fine  time  of  it  at  your 
house  that  I  can't  seem  to  get  up  much  regret 
over  my  mother's  departure." 

"  You  '11  be  homesick  enough,"  Theodora  pre 
dicted.  "  Wait  a  week  and  see." 

Two  days  later,  Mrs.  Farrington  took  the 
morning  train  for  New  York,  where  she  was  to 
meet  her  brother  and  go  with  him  to  the  Adiron- 
dacks.  Billy  stood  on  the  steps  to  wave  her  a 
farewell ;  then  he  slowly  crossed  the  lawn  to 
wards  the  gate  which  had  been  cut  through  the 
fence  under  "  Teddy  's  tree."  For  the  next 
week  or  two,  he  and  Theodora  were  busy  from 
morning  till  night,  revelling  in  the  thousand  and 
one  interests  for  which  the  days  had  been  all 


HER  BOOK  219 


too  short,  when  they  were  obliged  to  take  their 
meals  and  to  sleep  in  places  six  hundred  feet 
apart. 

One  golden  September  day,  Billy  and  Theo 
dora  were  out  under  the  old  apple-tree,  hard  at 
work  on  the  play  which  they  had  long  been 
planning  to  write.  It  was  to  be  given  on  the 
following  Christmas ;  and  the  parts,  written  to 
order,  included  the  three  older  McAlisters,  Billy, 
and  Archie  who  had  promised  to  come  East  in 
time  for  the  holidays.  There  was  need  for  strict 
division  of  labor.  Billy,  more  familiar  with 
theatres,  was  able  to  supply  the  stage  craft  and 
the  plot,  while  Theodora  padded  the  skeleton 
and  covered  the  dry  bones  of  his  outline  with 
sonorous  speeches  over  which  she  was  forced  to 
pause,  now  and  then,  to  smack  her  lips. 

" '  Die,  villain,  die  ;  and  drink  the  cup  of  ret 
ribution  for  all  your  sins  ! '  "  she  read.  "  How 
does  that  go,  Billy?" 

"  All  right,     Do  I  say  that,  or  does  Hu  ?" 

"  Hu.  Poor  Uncle  Archie  !  Then  he  tumbles 
over  with  a  whack  and  dies  in  Hope's  arms." 

"  What  kills  him  ?  You  never  do  half  kill 
people,  Ted.  You  take  too  much  for  granted." 

"  Conscience.  No ;  Hu,  that  is,  Sir  James, 
shoots  him." 


220  TEDDY 

"  I  remember  now.  I  'd  forgotten.  I  hope 
Hu  's  a  safe  shot." 

"  He  could  n't  hit  a  church,  if  he  tried."  Theo 
dora  giggled.  "  What 's  the  matter,  Hope  ? " 
For  she  saw  Hope  coming  rapidly  across  the 
lawn  towards  them. 

"  Bad  news,  dear."  Hope's  eyes  were  full  of 
tears.  "  Mamma  has  a  letter  from  Butte,  and 
Archie  is  in  the  hospital  there,  with  typhoid 
fever." 

"  Hope  !     Not  really  ?  " 

"Do  they  think  he'll  die?"  Billy  asked 
anxiously,  with  boyish  bluntness. 

Hope's  tears  began  to  fall  on  the  letter  in  her 
hand. 

"  They  say  he  's  very  ill,  and  that  they  felt  it 
was  best  to  write.  Papa  says  typhoid  is  always 
uncertain,  and  he  wants  mamma  to  start  West, 
to-night." 

"  Will  she  go  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know  yet.  She 's  half  wild,  for 
Archie  is  her  only  brother,  and  she  loves  him 
so." 

"  Don't  we  all  ? "  Theodora  questioned  im 
pulsively. 

Even  in  the  midst  of  her  tears,  Hope  blushed 
scarlet. 


HER   BOOK  221 


"  Not  in  the  same  way,  Teddy,"  she  said 
gently.  "  You  know  they  were  all  alone  with 
each  other  for  so  long.  I  hope  she  will  go." 

"  It  would  be  better  if  I  were  n't  here,"  Billy 
said  thoughtfully. 

"No;  you're  like  one  of  us,  Billy,  and  it's 
easier,  with  you  here  to  be  sorry  for  us,"  Hope 
said  gratefully,  for  she  had  been  quick  to  realize 
the  sympathy  in  his  look  and  tone.  "  Besides, 
it  may  not  be  so  bad.  Mamma,  if  she  goes,  may 
find  him  better  and  able  to  come  home  with 
her." 

Back  of  Theodora,  Billy  stretched  out  his 
hand  to  Hope  and  pressed  her  hand  in  silent 
token  of  understanding  and  pity.  Nothing  in 
creases  the  power  of  observation  like  suffering. 
Billy's  long  months  of  helpless  idleness  had 
taught  him  to  read  the  faces  and  moods  of  the 
people  about  him  as  a  strong,  active  boy  could 
never  have  done.  He  had  fathomed  the  true 
state  of  affairs  between  Archie  and  Hope.  He 
knew  how  much  of  Hope's  future  happiness, 
unknown  to  herself  even,  was  depending  on  the 
outcome  of  that  illness  of  Archie,  and  he  saw 
her  present  pain,  and  the  brave  self-control 
which  helped  her  to  master  it. 

Mrs.  McAlister  left  for  the  West,  that  night 


222  TEDDY 

The  days  which  followed  were  gloomy  ones  to 
them  all,  anxious  and  busy  ones  to  Hope  in  par 
ticular,  for  upon  her  devolved  the  care  of  the 
housekeeping  and  much  of  the  responsibility 
over  Allyn  and  Phebe  who  was  as  fractious  as 
never  before  and  resented  Hope's  gentle  rule. 
Two  more  letters  came  from  the  hospital ;  but 
they  reported  no  change.  Until  Mrs.  McAlister 
could  reach  her  brother,  they  could  know  noth 
ing  definite.  They  could  only  wait  and  hope. 

During  all  these  weary,  dreary  days,  it  was  a 
comfort  to  them  all  to  have  Billy  with  them.  It 
had  long  been  impossible  to  think  of  him  as  an 
outsider  ;  but  now  he  came  closer  to  them  than 
ever  before,  comforting  Hope,  helping  Theodora 
to  pass  the  time  of  restless  waiting,  cajoling 
Phebe  into  good  humor,  and  entertaining  Allyn 
by  the  hour.  Blithe  and  sunny-tempered  him 
self,  he  kept  them  from  becoming  too  blue,  while 
the  little  care  and  half-tender,  half-playful  cod 
dling  which  the  girls  gave  him  was  a  safety 
valve  for  their  tensely-strung  nerves. 

"  I  believe  I  love  those  old  crutches  of  yours, 
Billy,"  Theodora  said  impetuously,  one  night. 

He  had  been  unusually  weak,  all  that  day. 
Even  now,  there  were  times  when  his  strength 
failed  him  and  when,  for  the  passing  hour,  the 


HER   BOOK  223 


old  pain  came  back  to  give  him  a  few  twinges, 
as  a  reminder  that  he  could  not  afford  to  be  too 
careless.  He  had  been  lying  stretched  out  on 
the  sofa  with  Theodora  sitting  beside  him,  while 
the  twilight  dropped  over  the  room.  At  her 
words,  he  looked  up  abruptly. 

"  I  can't  say  that  I  do." 

"  No  ;  I  suppose  not.  Still,  I  owe  them  a  good 
deal." 

"  I  don't  see  why,"  he  said  vaguely,  as  his 
eyes  rested  on  her  bright  face,  just  now  look 
ing  unusually  dreamy  and  thoughtful,  while 
she  sat  staring  at  the  long  rosewood  staff  in 
her  hand. 

"  Perhaps  it 's  selfish,"  she  said,  with  a  smile  ; 
"  but  I  've  an  idea  that  if,  when  I  first  knew  you, 
you  'd  been  strong  and  —  just  like  other  boys,  I 
should  never  have  known  you  half  so  well.  Do 
you  know,  Billy  Farrington,  I  'd  just  like  a 
chance  to  fight  for  you,  to  do  something  to 
show  I  'm  not  a  friend  just  in  talk  and  nothing 
else." 

He  laughed  at  the  sudden  fierceness  of  her 
tone,  little  thinking  how  soon  her  words  would 
be  put  to  the  test. 

"  I  hope  you  won't  have  the  chance,  Ted  ;  but 
I  've  an  idea  that,  if  ever  I  were  in  a  tight  place, 


224  TEDDY 

you'd  help  me  out  of  it  sooner  than  anyone 
else." 

"  Try  me  and  see,"  she  answered  briefly. 

Good  news  came  to  them,  only  the  next  day. 
Mrs.  McAlister  had  reached  her  brother,  to  find 
that  convalescence  had  already  begun.  The  at 
tack  of  fever  had  been  sudden  and  sharp  ;  but 
Archie's  fresh  young  strength  had  held  its  own, 
and  his  recovery  was  likely  to  be  a  rapid  one. 

"  I  shall  bring  him  home  with  me,"  Mrs.  Mc 
Alister  wrote.  "  He  ought  n't  to  go  back  into 
camp,  this  fall ;  and  the  doctor  says  that  the 
long  rest  will  be  the  best  tonic  he  can  have,  for 
he  's  been  working  altogether  too  hard.  If  he 
is  able,  we  shall  start  for  home,  next  week,  and 
get  there  by  the  twenty-fifth." 

Hope  sang  blithely  to  herself,  all  that  day, 
and  even  Phebe  was  moved  into  a  more  agree 
able  mood  than  was  her  wont.  Allyn  took  a 
more  materialistic  view  of  the  situation. 

"  Uncle  Archie 's  going  to  get  well,"  he  re 
marked  to  Billy.  "  Now  he  can  bring  me 
nonner  engine." 

For  two  days,  the  McAlister  household  felt 
that  it  was  living  in  an  atmosphere  of  perpetual 
sunshine.  Then  the  clouds  fell  again.  It  was 
one  Saturday  morning.  Theodora  was  at  her 


HER  BOOK  225 


desk,  straightening  out  the  account  of  Mr.  Hunt- 
ington's  weekly  sales,  Hubert  was  playing  foot 
ball,  and  Hope  had  gone  to  market,  taking  Allyn 
with  her.  Out  on  the  lawn  west  of  the  house, 
Phebe  and  Isabel  St.  John  were  playing  tennis 
and  wrangling  loudly  over  the  score.  Left  to 
himself  in  the  house,  Billy  threw  aside  his  book, 
took  up  his  crutches,  and  went  away  to  the  barn, 
where  Dr.  McAlister  had  given  up  an  old  har 
ness  closet  for  his  use  in  developing  his  pictures. 
It  opened  out  of  the  barn  not  far  from  the  stalls 
where  Vigil  and  Prince  were  kept ;  but  it  was 
easily  accessible  and  sufficiently  roomy,  and 
Billy  had  accepted  the  doctor's  offer  eagerly. 

Once  shut  up  in  the  dark  in  company  with  his 
ruby  lantern,  Billy  fell  to  work  on  a  picture  of 
Allyn,  taken  only  the  day  before.  So  absorbed 
was  he  that  it  was  only  vaguely  that  he  heard 
the  voices  of  Phebe  and  Isabel  in  the  barn  close 
at  hand.  The  murmur  went  on  for  some  mo 
ments,  broken  by  girlish  gigglings  and  little 
squeals  of  merriment.  Suddenly  there  came 
another  squeal,  louder,  this  time,  and  more  ear 
nest  ;  there  was  an  interchange  of  swift,  low 
words,  and  then  silence  fell,  and  Billy  dismissed 
the  incident  from  his  mind. 

The  picture  proved  refractory  and  refused  to 

15 


226  TEDDY 

come  out.  Then  at  length  Billy  gave  it  up  in 
despair,  threw  away  the  developing  fluid,  cast 
the  plate  into  a  pile  of  similar  failures,  took  up 
his  crutches,  and  started  for  the  house  again. 
On  the  way,  he  met  Phebe  and  Isabel.  They 
looked  at  him  furtively  as  he  passed. 

"  What 's  up,  Phebe  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Nothing.  I  only  thought  you  looked  tired," 
she  replied,  with  unusual  thoughtfulness. 

"  So  I  am,  of  doing  nothing.  Come  in  and 
play  casino  with  me." 

"  Can't,"  Phebe  said  hastily.  "  We  'd  like  to, 
Billy ;  but  there  's  something  else  we  've  got  to 
do." 

"  All  right."     And  he  passed  on. 

They  were  all  seated  at  the  dinner-table,  that 
noon,  when  the  doctor  came  into  the  room.  His 
face  was  white  and  very  stern. 

"  Yigil  is  dead,"  he  said  abruptly.  "  Do  any 
of  you  children  know  anything  about  it  ?  " 

"  I  don't,"  said  the  twins,  in  a  breath,  and 
Hope  echoed  them  ;  but  Phebe  started  and  cast 
a  swift  glance  at  Billy. 

"  Do  you,  Billy  ? "  the  doctor  asked,  for  the 
glance  was  not  lost  on  him. 

"  No ;  of  course  not.     When  did  she  die  ? " 

"  This   noon,  when  I  came  in,  I  found   her. 


HER  BOOK  227 


She  was  groaning  pitifully,  and  very  weak.  1 
wonder  that  you  didn't  hear  her." 

"  She  died  ?  "  Billy  asked  sympathetically,  for 
the  doctor's  voice  broke  over  the  last  words. 
Vigil  had  been  his  favorite  horse,  and  together, 
man  and  beast,  they  had  passed  through  many 
a  tragic  night  and  day.  Such  friends  cause 
bitter  mourning. 

"  I  shot  her,  to  put  her  out  of  her  misery,"  he 
responded  briefly.  Then  he  turned  to  Phebe. 

"  Phebe,  do  you  know  anything  about  this  ?  " 

She  grew  white. 

"No,"  she  stammered.  "At  least,  not  ex 
actly." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  Do  you  know  anything 
about  Vigil  ? " 

"I  — I'd  rather  not  tell." 

"Answer  me,"  he  said  sternly. 

For  her  only  reply,  she  burst  out  crying,  and 
cast  another  glance  at  Billy.  Her  father  took 
her  hand  and  led  her  away  to  the  office. 

"  Now,  Phebe,  I  want  you  to  tell  me  about 
this,"  he  said. 

"Oh,  no." 

"  Did  you  do  anything  to  Vigil  ?  " 

"No." 

"  Do  you  know  who  did  ?  " 


228  TEDDY 

"N  — no." 

"  Phebe,  this  is  n't  a  time  to  shield  the  culprit. 
Tell  me  what  you  know." 

"  I  don't  know  anything,"  she  sobbed. 

"  Were  you  at  the  barn,  this  morning  ? " 

«  No." 

"Did  you  see  any  one  go  there?" 

"No  — only  Billy." 

"  Was  Billy  there  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

"  When  ? " 

"  About  ten  o'clock." 

"  You  saw  him  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  Isabel  and  I  were  playing  tennis,  and  I 
saw  him  go.  When  he  came  back,  I  met  him, 
and  he  looked  so  queer  that  I  asked  him  if  any 
thing  was  the  matter." 

"Queer?     How?" 

"  Dark,  sort  of,  under  his  eyes,  and  —  scared." 

"  Phebe,"  the  doctor  looked  at  her  steadily, 
searchingly  ;  "  is  this  all  true  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

He  took  a  quick  turn  up  and  down  the  room. 

"  And  1  thought  the  fellow  was  true  as  steel," 
he  muttered  to  himself.  "  Those  eyes  ought  to 
be  true.  Poor  fellow  !  I  wish  Bess  were  here  to 
talk  to  him." 


HER   BOOK 


His  face  was  very  gentle  as  he  went  back  to 
the  dining-room.  As  soon  as  the  meal  was  over, 
he  turned  to  Billy. 

"  Come  to  the  office  a  minute,  Billy,"  he  said. 

With  a  look  of  wonder  on  his  face,  Billy 
followed  him  to  the  door.  When  they  were 
alone,  the  doctor  spoke. 

"  Billy,"  he  said  quietly ;  "  Phebe  says  you 
were  at  the  barn,  this  morning." 

"  So  I  was,"  he  answered. 

"  That  you  were  the  only  one  who  went 
there." 

"  How  does  she  know  ? "  Billy  asked  easily, 
for  as  yet  he  did  not  see  whither  the  doctor's 
questions  were  leading. 

"  Did  you  see  Vigil  ?  " 

Then,  of  a  sudden,  the  truth  burst  on  the  boy, 
and  he  flushed  with  anger.  The  doctor  saw 
his  heightened  color,  and  mistook  it  for  guilt. 

"  And  I  trusted  you  so,  Billy,"  he  said  sor 
rowfully. 

"  Dr.  McAlister,  do  you  think  I  did  anything 
to  your  horse  ?  " 

"  Who  else  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know,  and  I  don't  care,"  the  boy 
returned  recklessly.  Then,  with  an  effort,  he 
regained  his  self-control.  "  Dr.  McAlister,"  he 


230  TEDDY 

said,  and  his  true,  honest  blue  eyes  met  the 
doctor's  eyes  steadily  ;  "  Dr.  McAlister,  on  my 
honor,  I  have  not  been  near  Vigil,  nor  done 
anything  to  hurt  her.  That  is  all  I  can  say 
about  it." 

There  was  a  silence,  long  and  tense.  Then, 
as  the  doctor  made  no  sign,  Billy  turned  away 
and  went  out  of  the  office. 


HER  BOOK  231 


CHAPTER  NINETEEN 

r  I  ^HE  doctor  was  attempting   to  argue  with 
Theodora. 

"  But,  Teddy,  who  else  can  have  done  it  ? 
Nobody  else  had  been  to  the  barn." 

"  How  do  you  know  ? " 

"  Because  the  only  way  to  get  in  was  through 
the  front  door.  Phebe  and  Isabel  were  in  plain 
sight  of  that,  all  the  morning,  and  they  saw  no 
one  but  Billy  go  there." 

Theodora's  lips  closed  stubbornly,  and  her 
eyes,  as  they  met  those  of  her  father,  flashed 
with  defiance.  When  at  last  she  spoke,  her 
manner  was  respectful,  but  her  voice  had  an 
odd,  metallic  ring. 

"  And  so  Billy  must  have  done  it.  What  do 
you  suppose  he  did  to  Vigil?" 

"  She  was  poisoned,"  the  doctor  answered 
briefly,  for  the  subject  was  as  painful  to  him 
as  to  his  daughter. 

"  Do  you  think  he  did  it  on  purpose  ?  "  Theo 
dora's  tone  was  hostile. 

"Teddy!" 


232  TEDDY 

"  Well,  I  know,"  she  said  passionately,  for  her 
self-control  had  been  exhausted  during  the  past 
half-hour ;  "  but  you  might  as  well  say  he  gave 
the  horse  poison  out  of  spite  as  to  say  he  did  it 
at  all.  It's  so  like  Billy  to  go  meddling  with 
what  does  n't  belong  to  him.  It 's  so  like  him  to 
lie  about  it  afterwards.  Papa  McAlister,  Billy 
Farrington  does  n't  lie,  and  he  has  said  to  you 
over  and  over  again  that  he  had  nothing  to  do 
with  it !  " 

"  But  Phebe  says  —  " 

"  Phebe !  "  Theodora's  voice  was  expressive. 
"  You  believe  her  above  Billy  ?  " 

"  Teddy,  dear,"  the  doctor's  voice  was  very  low 
and  sorrowful ;  "  don't  make  it  harder  for  me 
than  you  can  help.  I  have  loved  Billy  like  my 
own  boy,  and  I  have  believed  in  his  honor  as  I 
have  in  Hu's  ;  but  I  have  found  something  that 
tells  the  story.  Down  in  the  hay  in  Vigil's 
manger,  I  found  this  bottle."  He  held  it  up  as 
he  spoke,  and  Theodora  read  the  label.  "  It  is 
what  Billy  uses  for  his  pictures  ;  no  one  else 
touches  the  stuff." 

"  And  you  think  he  put  it  there  ? " 

"  Accidentally.  He  may  have  dropped  it,  you 
know,  as  he  went  in.  Of  course,  he  did  n't  mean 
to  be  careless,  and  when  I  first  spoke  to  him 


HER  BOOR  233 


about  it,  he  probably  did  n?t  know.  I  could 
have  forgiven  the  accident ;  but  when  I  showed 
him  the  bottle,  and  he  lied  about  it  to  save  him 
self  —  "  Dr.  McAlister  paused. 

At  sight  of  the  overwhelming  testimony  of 
the  bottle,  Theodora  had  dropped  down  into  a 
chair.  Now  she  sprang  up  again. 

"  I  '11  never  believe  it  as  long  as  I  live,  bottle 
or  no  bottle  !  "  she  said  violently.  "  It  is  mean 
and  cruel  and  abominable  to  lay  it  to  Billy  Far- 
rington ;  and  I  will  never  believe  he  had  any 
thing  to  do  with  it  till  he  says  he  had.  I  never 
thought  you  'd  treat  a  guest  in  your  own  house 
like  this,  Papa  McAlister.  You  can  everyone 
of  you  go  back  on  him,  if  you  want.  I  intend 
to  stand  by  him."  She  gave  a  nod  of  emphasis 
to  her  words  ;  then,  bursting  into  tears,  she 
banged  the  door  and  rushed  away  to  Billy. 

She  found  him  in  his  room,  sitting  by  the  win 
dow  and  trying  to  read.  He  looked  pale  and 
worried,  for  it  had  been  impossible  for  him  to 
blind  himself  to  the  attitude  of  the  family 
towards  him  during  the  past  three  days.  Hope 
and  Hubert  were  scrupulously  polite,  with  a 
frigid,  remote  courtesy  which  was  worse  than 
open  hostility;  Phebe  avoided  him  as  if  he  had 
the  plague ;  and  Allyn  showed  a  marked  inclina- 


234  TEDDY 

tion  to  converse  about  the  present  state  of  affairs 
which  was  scarcely  soothing  to  Billy's  irritated 
nerves.  After  the  first  day,  he  had  remained 
most  of  the  time  in  his  own  room,  whither  Theo 
dora  followed  him  and  insisted  upon  admission. 

"  What  do  you  care  if  they  do  act  like  idiots  ?" 
she  demanded  fiercely.  "  I  'm  ashamed  of  them 
all,  utterly  ashamed  ;  but  I  would  n't  care." 

"  Yes,  you  would,"  he  returned  drearily.  "  It 's 
no  fun  to  be  sent  to  Coventry  like  this,  Ted.  I 
wish  Hope  and  Hu  would  speak  out,  and  have  it 
over  with.  I  'd  like  a  chance  to  defend  myself ; 
but,  if  this  keeps  on,  I  shall  begin  to  think  I  did 
do  it." 

"  Have  n't  you  any  idea  ? "  she  asked. 

He  shook  his  head. 

"No." 

"  Honestly  ?  You  're  not  trying  to  shield 
some  one  ? " 

"I'm  not  in  a  Sunday-school  book,"  he  re 
turned.  "  Besides,  who  is  there  ?  " 

"  Somebody.  You  did  n't  do  it.  Oh,  Billy,  I 
wish  I  were  good  for  anything !  " 

"  You  're  pretty  much  all  there  is,  Ted.  Per 
haps,  when  your  mother  comes,  it  won't  be  so 
bad." 

She    came,   the    next   evening,  escorted    by 


HER  BOOK  235 


Archie,  who  looked  white  and  thin,  but  other 
wise  appeared  like  his  usual  self.  Theodora  felt 
that  his  coming  brought  a  whiff  of  fresher  air 
into  the  sultry  life  of  the  family  circle.  He  was 
so  gay,  so  full  of  the  breezy  atmosphere  of  the 
western  mountains,  that  his  coming  seemed  to 
scatter  a  little  the  clouds  which  had  gathered  ; 
while  his  honest,  kindly  face  made  her  feel,  as  it 
had  done  before,  that  he  was  a  friend  to  be 
trusted. 

The  doctor  had  met  the  travellers  at  the  sta 
tion,  and  Theodora  knew  that  they  were  in  pos 
session  of  the  story  long  before  they  reached 
the  house.  It  was  impossible  from  Mrs.  McAi- 
ister's  manner  to  read  her  decision  in  regard  to 
the  rights  of  the  case.  She  met  Billy  as  cor 
dially  as  ever,  when  he  came  down  to  supper ; 
and  during  the  meal  she  forced  him  to  take  an 
active  part  in  the  conversation.  As  soon  as 
they  left  the  table,  Billy  turned  away  and  went 
to  his  room.  A  moment  later,  she  tapped  on 
his  door. 

"  Come  in,"  he  said,  for  he  supposed  it  was 
Theodora. 

She  came  in  and  sat  down  beside  him. 

"  Billy,  my  boy,"  she  said  gently  ;  "  tell  me 
all  about  it,  as  if  I  were  your  own  mother." 


236  TEDDY 

He  looked  up,  and  something  in  the  expres 
sion  of  his  blue  eyes  reminded  her  of  a  hunted 
animal. 

"  What  is  there  to  tell  ? " 

"There  ought  to  be  a  great  deal,"  she  said, 
smiling  faintly.  She  was  startled  at  the  change 
in  the  boy,  at  his  pallor  and  at  the  listlessness 
which  pervaded  his  whole  being. 

"  But  Dr.  McAlister  has  told  you." 

"  Yes ;  but  not  all."     She  paused  expectantly. 

He  misunderstood  the  pause.  As  if  goaded 
to  desperation,  he  turned  on  her. 

"  Are  you  going  back  on  me,  too,  Mrs.  Mc 
Alister  ?  I  thought  you  would  stand  my  friend." 

"I  do." 

"  But  you  doubt  my  word  ?  " 

She  was  silent,  unable  to  say  yes  or  no. 

He  changed  the  form  of  his  question. 

"  Do  you  believe  me  ?" 

"  Billy,  dear,  I  don't  know  what  to  think." 

He  shook  back  his  hair  impatiently. 

"  That 's  it.  I  'm  not  used  to  having  my  word 
doubted,  and  —  it  hurts." 

Meanwhile,  Theodora  and  Hubert  were  in 
the  hall. 

"  Where  are  you  going,  Ted  ? "  Hubert  had 
asked,  as  they  left  the  table. 


HER  BOOK  237 


«  To  Billy." 

"  I  should  think  you  might  stay  here,  to-night, 
when  Archie  has  just  come." 

"  Archie  has  you  and  Hope." 

"  But  it's  not  decent,  Ted,  to  leave  him." 

"  It 's  not  decent  to  send  Billy  off  by  himself," 
she  retorted. 

"  Who  sends  him  ?  " 

«  All  of  you." 

"  He  need  n't  sulk  like  a  baby." 

"  It  is  n't  sulking,  Hu.  I  'd  go  off  and  not 
stay  with  people  who  doubt  my  word." 

"  Hm  !     He  need  n't  lie,  then." 

Theodora  faced  him  angrily. 

"  Shame,  Hu  !  How  do  you  know  he  lies  ? 
Is  this  the  way  you  stand  by  your  friends  ? " 

"  He  is  no  friend  of  mine." 

"  He  was.  He  is  my  friend  now,  as  much  as 
ever." 

Hubert  shrugged  his  shoulders. 

"  Girls  always  are  sentimental,  and  your  head 
is  full  of  yarns,  Ted.  You  are  welcome  to  be 
lieve  your  Billy  as  much  as  you  want  to.  No 
body  else  does." 

"  I  do."  And  Archie  came  striding  into  the 
hall.  "  I  did  n't  mean  to  listen  to  you ;  but  I 
could  n't  help  hearing.  I  know  something  of 


238  TEDDY 

men.  I  have  n't  roughed  it  all  this  time  for 
nothing,  and  I  've  seen  all  kinds.  You  will 
never  make  me  believe  that  Will  Farrington  has 
lied  to  get  himself  out  of  a  scrape.  I  'd  sooner 
think  that  Allyn  himself  did  it.  Billy  is  a  good 
fellow,  and  I  '11  stand  by  him  and  see  fair  play. 
Here 's  my  hand  on  it,  Ted." 

There  was  a  manly  ring  to  Archie's  words 
and  a  hearty  grip  of  his  hand,  and  they  sent 
Theodora  to  bed  happier  than  she  had  been  for 
days.  It  had  been  impossible  for  her  to  throw 
off  Billy's  trouble.  The  whole  atmosphere  of 
the  house  had  seemed  to  be  tainted  by  it. 
They  all  felt  the  weight  of  uncertainty  and  gloom 
more  or  less ;  but  for  Theodora,  loyal  to  Billy 
as  a  girl  could  be,  it  amounted  to  a  species  of 
torture,  and  she  felt  an  Ishmael  indeed,  with 
every  man's  hand  against  her.  She  never 
thought  of  swerving  from  her  allegiance,  how 
ever.  Alone  and  unaided,  she  would  fight  for 
Billy  against  the  world.  Still,  it  was  very  good 
to  find  that  Archie  was  upon  her  side. 

"  If  I  could  only  go  away  somewhere  !  "  Billy 
said  disconsolately,  the  next  night.  "  I  thought 
your  mother  would  stand  by  me,  but  she  does  n't. 
It 's  awful  to  be  here  in  your  house,  when  you 
are  all  down  on  me  like  this." 


HER  BOOK  239 


"  I  wish  your  mother  would  come  home," 
Theodora  responded. 

"  She  won't." 

"  Not  if  she  knew  ? " 

"  She  could  n't  very  well.  Besides,  what  good 
could  she  do  ?  " 

"  Everything.     She  'd  believe  you." 

"  Of  course." 

"  That 's  something,  and  she  'd  find  out,  some 
how  or  other.  Send  for  her,  Billy." 

"  No ;  she  'd  only  worry.  She  '11  be  home 
before  long." 

"  Not  for  two  weeks.  We  shall  all  be  dead 
by  that  time." 

"  I  wish  I  could  go  to  her." 

"  Why  don't  you  ? "  she  asked  impulsively. 

His  smile  was  very  sad,  as  he  pointed  to  his 
crutches. 

"  I  'm  not  up  to  a  journey  like  that,  Ted.  I 
shouldn't  make  much  of  a  figure,  travelling 
alone." 

"  I  '11  go,  myself,  and  bring  her  home." 

"  You  can't.  You  're  too  young  to  take  such 
a  journey  alone,  Ted.  It 's  good  of  you  to  think 
of  it,  but  it  would  n't  do.  No  ;  we  '11  stick  it 
out  somehow.  It  is  n't  as  bad  as  if  you  were  n't 
here  to  stand  up  for  me." 


240  TEDDY 

She  rose  and  stood  beside  him,  resting  her 
hand  on  his  shoulder. 

"  It 's  not  much  I  can  do,  Billy ;  but  I  'm 
bound  to  do  something.  My  whole  family  appear 
to  have  gone  mad  over  that  old  horse.  I  can't 
help  their  stupidity  ;  but  maybe  I  can  help  you 
out  a  very  little.  "Whatever  I  do,  remember 
what  I  said,  only  a  few  days  ago,  that  I  'd  like 
the  chance  to  fight  for  you,  to  show  that  I  'm  a 
friend  in  something  besides  words." 

He  looked  up  at  her  gratefully. 

"  You  are  a  plucky  champion,  Teddy.  I  wish 
I  knew  what  to  do,  myself ;  but  they  seem  to 
have  me  on  all  sides.  No  matter ;  with  you  and 
Archie  to  back  me  up,  I'll  manage -to  pull 
through  somehow." 

She  patted  his  shoulder  encouragingly. 

"  That 's  right.  Keep  up  your  pluck,  Billy. 
Something  can  be  done  about  it,  I  know.  You 
can  furnish  the  brains  and  I  the  backbone. 
Good-night,  old  boy." 

She  went  away  to  her  own  room,  but  not  to 
bed.  For  two  hours,  she  could  be  heard  moving 
stealthily  to  and  fro,  opening  a  closet  door,  clos 
ing  a  bureau  drawer.  Once  the  floor  creaked 
softly,  and  a  door  latch  clicked.  Then  silence 
fell  again,  and  no  one  was  the  wiser  for  Theo 
dora's  sleeplessness. 


HER  BOOK  241 


She  was  late  in  appearing  at  the  breakfast 
table,  the  next  morning.  Mrs.  McAlister  rang 
the  bell  for  a  third  time.  Then  she  sent  Phebe 
to  call  her  sister.  A  moment  later,  Phebe  came 
flying  back,  with  staring  eyes. 

"  Oh,  mamma,"  she  panted ;  "  Teddy  is  n't 
anywhere  !  She  did  n't  answer,  so  I  opened  the 
door.  The  room  is  empty,  and  the  bed  has  n't 
been  slept  in  at  all." 


242  TEDDY 


CHAPTER  TWENTY 

LAKE  LODGE,  28  September. 
To  Dr.  JOHN  McALisiER  : 

Theodora    reached    here    safely.      My    brother 

worse.     Send  for  her. 

JESSIE  FABRIXGTOX. 

THIS  was  the  telegram  which  was  delivered 
at  the  doctor's  door,  two  days  later.  It 
came  in  upon  an  anxious  household,  for  up  to 
that  time  they  had  been  able  to  gain  no  clue  to 
Theodora's  disappearance.  Billy  alone  had  had 
an  inkling  of  the  truth,  but  he  dared  not  hint  it 
to  the  rest.  It  was  only  an  inkling,  vague  and 
groundless,  and  he  felt  that  it  would  do  no  good 
to  speak  of  it.  At  best,  he  would  be  accused  of 
urging  his  friend  to  take  the  sudden  journey, 
and  he  was  unwilling  to  increase  the  suspicion 
which  already  lay  heavy  upon  him. 

He  knew,  however,  that  Theodora's  departure 
had  something  to  do  with  himself.  Her  last 
words  seemed  to  him,  as  he  went  back  to  them, 
to  convey  no  doubtful  hint  of  her  intentions. 
He  had  had  no  suspicion  at  the  time ;  but  now 
he  realized  how  like  her  impulsive  loyalty  it 


HER  BOOK  243 


would  be  to  go  flying  off  somewhere,  anywhere, 
to  get  help  for  him,  to  find  some  way  of  putting 
an  end  to  the  wretched  situation.  He  was  thor 
oughly  sorry  for  her  absence,  and  uneasy  about 
her ;  yet  he  felt  little  alarm,  for  he  was  perfectly 
convinced  of  her  ability  to  look  out  for  herself. 
Moreover,  he  was  human  enough  to  watch  the 
distraction  of  the  family  with  a  certain  amuse 
ment.  He  was  sure  that  Theodora  would  turn 
up  soon,  alive  and  well,  and  full  of  entertaining 
stories  of  her  adventure.  Meanwhile,  it  was 
their  turn  to  be  anxious. 

Then  a  new  anxiety  came  into  the  household. 
Phebe,  who  had  been  nervous  and  irritable,  all 
the  day  after  Theodora's  disappearance,  grew 
feverish  at  night.  Her  father  made  a  short 
examination,  pronounced  her  to  be  suffering 
from  the  epidemic  of  chicken  pox  which  had 
infested  the  schools  of  late,  and  ordered  her  to 
bed.  She  obeyed  him  by  going  to  her  room, 
escaping  by  way  of  the  back  stairs  and  taking  a 
long  walk  in  the  twilight  with  Isabel  St.  John, 
with  whom  lately  it  had  been  necessary  for 
Phebe  to  hold  many  secret  conferences.  The 
next  morning,  the  rash  had  entirely  disappeared, 
and  Phebe  lay  tossing  in  delirium. 

It  was  into  this  household  that  Mrs.  Farring- 


244  TEDDY 

ton's  telegram  came,  like  a  message  sent  from 
Heaven. 

The  doctor  tore  open  the  long  yellow  en 
velope.  His  face,  already  of  a  dull  grayish 
color,  grew  a  shade  more  pale,  and  he  shut  his 
teeth  together,  as  one  prepared  for  bad  tidings. 
He  read  the  few  words ;  then  he  drew  his  hand 
across  his  eyes. 

"Thank  God!"  he  said  brokenly.  "Teddy 
is  safe." 

The  news  went  like  wildfire  through  the 
house.  There  was  a  babel  of  rejoicing  and  ex 
clamation  ;  but  it  was  to  Billy  that  the  doctor 
had  turned. 

"  My  dear  boy,"  he  said,  laying  his  hand  on 
Billy's  shoulder ;  "  our  troubles  are  over  now,  if 
Phebe  pulls  through." 

Billy  answered  his  handclasp. 

"  We  '11  forget  it  ever  happened,"  he  said 
jovially. 

"  One  does  n't  forget  such  things,"  the  doctor 
said  gravely  ;  but  Billy  laughed  his  old  glad, 
clear  laugh. 

"  You  've  done  enough  for  me,  Dr.  McAlister, 
to  balance  anything  else.  Remember  what  I 
was  when  I  came  here,  and  look  at  me  now." 

The  family  council  which  followed  was  short. 


HER  BOOK  245 


Neither  Dr.  McAlister  nor  his  wife  liked  to  leave 
Phebe  while  she  was  still  so  ill ;  Hubert  was  too 
young,  they  felt,  to  go  to  his  sister ;  s.o  it  was 
Archie  who  finally  volunteered  to  bring  back  the 
runaway. 

"  Shall  I  scold  her  very  hard  ? "  he  asked, 
laughing,  as  he  took  up  his  dress-suit  case,  an 
hour  later. 

"  Leave  that  to  me,"  the  doctor  replied,  while 
he  tried  in  vain  to  look  stern. 

As  Archie  passed  him,  Billy  slipped  a  note  in 
to  his  hand. 

"  Take  that  to  Ted,"  he  whispered,  and  Archie 
nodded. 

It  was  high  noon,  the  next  day,  when  Archie 
walked  into  the  Lodge.  Theodora  met  him  with 
a  little,  glad  outcry. 

"  Archie  !  Did  you  come  for  me  ? " 

"  It  looks  like  it.  What 's  more,  I  've  brought 
good  news." 

"  What  ? " 

"  Billy  is  cleared,  and  I  left  the  whole  family 
munching  humble  pie." 

"  Archie  !  "  And  Theodora  cast  herself  into 
his  arms  and  wept  hysterically. 

The  young  man  looked  half  abashed,  half 
pleased,  at  hia  burden. 


246  TEDDY 

"  Go  easy,  now,  Ted,"  he  remonstrated. 
"  Don't  take  all  the  starch  out  of  my  collar, 
you  know." 

"  Who  did  it  ? "  she  demanded. 

"  Phebe." 

"  Archie  Holden !  The  little  wretch  !  And 
she  let  Billy  bear  the  blame !  I  — " 

"  She 's  getting  her  come-uppance,"  Archie 
observed,  with  scant  pity  for  Phebe.  "  She 's 
no  end  ill  with  chicken  pox.  That 's  the  reason 
your  father  could  n't  come  for  you." 

"  I  don't  care ;  she  deserves  it,"  Theodora 
said  vengefully.  "  How  did  it  come  out  ? " 

"  Providence  seemed  to  take  a  hand  in  it, 
Ted.  'Twas  the  queerest  thing.  The  night 
after  you  left,  when  the  family  were  all  half 
wild  about  you,  and  no  wonder,  Babe  took  her 
hand  in  the  game  by  coming  down  with  hen  pox. 
She  caught  cold  somehow,  the  rash  went  in  and 
struck  on  the  brain,  and  she  turned  delirious. 
,The  first  thing  she  did,  she  told  the  whole  story. 
I  suppose  she  had  been  harping  on  it  so  much 
that  it  came  out,  like  murder." 

"  What  did  she  do  ?  " 

"  As  nearly  as  we  can  piece  it  together,  she 
and  Isabel  went  into  the  barn,  that  morning,  and 
started  to  feed  Yigil.  Then  in  fun  they  began 


HER  BOOK  247 


firing  things  at  each  other,  till  at  last  Babe 
picked  up  a  box  of  Paris  green  and  shied  it  at 
Isabel.  It  struck  the  manger  and  broke  all  to 
pieces.  They  cleaned  up  what  they  could,  and 
sneaked  away.  Whether  Babe  started  to  throw 
the  blame  on  Billy  at  first,  they  don't  know  ; 
but,  after  dinner,  Babe  hunted  up  the  bottle  and 
hid  it  in  the  manger.  It  isn't  a  pretty  story, 
Ted ;  but  it 's  true." 

"Babe  ought  to  be  —  " 

"Abolished,"  Archie  supplemented,  with  a 
jovial  laugh.  "  No  matter,  your  father  will 
have  something  to  say  to  her  by  and  by.  By 
Jove,  Ted,  I  wish  you  'd  seen  him  go  down  on 
his  knees  to  Billy  !  There  was  something  grand 
in  it,  to  see  him,  with  his  gray  hair  and  great 
brown  eyes,  apologizing  to  a  boy  like  that.  Of 
course,  he  owed  him  an  apology  and  a  big  one  ; 
but  not  many  men  would  have  made  it  so  gener 
ously  before  us  all." 

"  There  are  n't  many  men  like  him,"  Theodora 
said  proudly.  "  And  Billy  ?  How  is  he  ?" 

"  Jolly  as  a  sandpiper.  He  vows  that  there  's 
no  one  quite  like  you,  though.  You  did  stand 
by  him  like  a  good  fellow,  Ted,  for  a  fact." 

"  You  too,  Archie.  You  helped  me  out,  when 
you  came.  I  wish  you  were  my  brother." 


248  TEDDY 

Archie  laughed  a  little  consciously. 

"  Maybe  we  can  fix  that  up  in  time.  Now  go 
along  and  pack  up  your  trumpery." 

Theodora's  face  suddenly  grew  grave. 

"  Are  they  very  angry  at  me  at  home,  Archie  ? " 

He  laughed. 

"  Horribly.  Still,  I  've  an  idea  that,  if  you  're 
meek  enough,  you  '11  be  in  a  fair  way  to  be  for 
given." 

And  she  was  forgiven.  Her  welcome  home  was 
hearty  and  loving  from  them  all,  pathetically 
so  from  Billy,  who  tried  in  vain  to  cover  his  real 
emotion  under  a  boyish  indifference.  The  last 
words  were  still  to  be  said,  however ;  and  it  was 
not  until  Theodora  sat  alone  in  the  office  with 
her  father,  that  night,  that  she  felt  the  incident 
was  ended  and  she  stood  among  them  on  pre 
cisely  the  old  ground. 

"  I  can't  blame  you,  niy  girl,"  he  said  at  last, 
as  he  drew  his  arm  yet  more  tightly  about  her 
waist.  "  You  were  rash  and  headstrong.  You 
caused  us  two  days  of  terrible  anxiety,  and  you 
might  have  run  into  serious  difficulties ;  but 
your  purpose  was  a  good  one,  even  if  it  was  too 
impetuous  and  daring  for  a  child  like  you.  We 
were  all  blind,  Teddy,  strangely  blind ;  and  I 
can  never  forgive  myself  for  my  unjust  suspi- 


HER  BOOK  249 


cioris,  nor  be  glad  enough  that  you  stood  by 
your  old  friend  in  the  face  of  all  this  evidence." 
There  was  a  silence.  Then  he  bent  over  and 
kissed  her  forehead.  "  Teddy  dear,  if  you  can 
only  tame  down  this  rashness  of  yours,  and  yet 
be  the  same  loyal  girl  you  are  now,  your  woman 
hood  will  be  very  big  and  beautiful.  But 
remember  this,  dear,  in  all  this  wilful,  hasty 
end  of  the  century,  a  true  woman  must  be  as 
gentle  as  she  is  brave,  as  thoughtful  as  she 
is  loving." 

"  But  I  'm  glad  it 's  all  over,"  Theodora  said 
contentedly,  the  next  day. 

She  and  Billy  sat  on  the  piazza,  in  the  golden 
noon  of  an  early  October  day.  Hope  was  in  the 
hammock,  with  Allyn  beside  her  and  Archie  on 
the  floor  at  her  feet,  while  Hubert  sat  on  the 
rail  facing  them  all.  Theodora  had  been  enter 
taining  them  with  an  account  of  her  journey, 
and  she  ended  her  story  with  these  words. 

"  It  has  been  a  terrible  month,"  Hope  said 
thoughtfully.  "  After  our  years  of  placid  exist 
ence,  it  seems  as  if  a  cyclone  had  struck  us,  all 
at  once.  I  should  think  you'd  wish  you  had 
never  set  eyes  on  us,  Billy." 

"  I  do,"  he  replied  tranquilly,  as  he  stared  at 
Theodora's  bright  face. 


250  TEDDY 

"  Poor  old  William  ! "  she  said,  laughing.  "  It 
was  a  sorry  day  for  you  when  I  descended  on 
you  from  the  apple-tree." 

"  Adam  and  Eve  never  knew  how  well  off  they 
were,  till  the  serpent  came,"  Archie  suggested. 
"  I  have  a  notion  we  shall  have  a  better  time 
than  ever,  now  it 's  all  over." 

"  You  can  crow  over  it,  if  you  like,"  Hubert 
said  remorsefully.  "  You  and  Ted  were  on  the 
winning  side  of  things.  Billy,  my  friendship 
is  n't  good  for  much ;  but  I  '11  be  hanged  if  I 
ever  expected  to  go  back  on  you  and  make  such 
a  jay  of  myself." 

"  Never  mind,  Hu  ;  it 's  over  now,"  Theodora 
said  consolingly. 

"  Yes,  thanks  to  you,"  Hubert  returned.  "  My 
share  in  it  is  n't  much." 

Theodora  laughed. 

"  Thanks  to  Babe,  you  'd  better  say.  We 
should  still  have  been  a  divided  household,  if 
Babe  had  n't  been  benevolent  enough  to  have 
chicken  pox." 

"  She  did  n't,"  Allyn  objected  suddenly.  "  The 
chicken  did  n't  come  out  any.  I  watched  to  see 
it,  and  I  could  n't,  and  papa  said  so,  too,  and 
that 's  what  made  her  so  wretchable." 

"  But  it 's  over,  as  Teddy  says,"  Hope  observed, 


HER  BOOK  251 


breaking  in  on  the  laugh  that  followed  Allyn's 
contribution  to  medical  science ;  "  and  I  can't 
help  feeling  that  we  are  going  to  have  a  lovely 
winter,  with  Archie  here,  and  Billy  to  stay  on 
till  Thanksgiving.  There  's  time  to  make  up  for 
all  we  've  lost  now." 

"  We'll  make  the  most  of  it,  then,  for  this  will 
be  my  last  winter  here,  for  ever  so  long,"  Billy 
said,  rising.  "  If  I  enter  college,  next  fall,  it 
will  be  a  good  while  before  I  settle  down  at 
home  again." 

"  And  I  too,"  Theodora  added,  as  she  rose  and 
stood  beside  him. 

He  smiled  down  into  her  eyes  for  a  moment, 
as  they  stood  there.  Then  together  they  turned 
and  walked  away.  The  world  about  them  lay 
golden  in  the  sunlight  and  in  the  glow  reflected 
back  from  the  yellow  leaves  of  the  hickories  ;  but 
not  one  whit  less  golden  was  the  future,  as  it 
stretched  away  and  away  before  their  glad  young 
eyes. 


252  TEDDY 


CHAPTER  TWENTY-ONE 

IT  was  commencement  week  at  Smith  College. 
To  the  alumna  and  the  student,  the  picture 
called  up  by  those  words  is  sufficiently  definite 
and  demands  no  amplification.  To  them,  is  no 
prettier  sight  possible  than  the  broad  campus 
dotted  with  buildings,  and  the  knots  of  daintily- 
dressed  girls  moving  slowly  to  and  fro  along  the 
winding  paths.  The  Meadow  City  always  puts 
on  her  most  festal  array  in  honor  of  the  occa 
sion  ;  the  very  heavens  seem  to  watch  for  that 
week,  and  to  provide  for  it  the  finest  moon  of 
the  whole  summer. 

Baccalaureate  was  over,  and,  early  Monday 
evening,  groups  were  already  gathering  on  the 
campus  at  the  rear  of  College  Hall,  eager  to 
secure  comfortable  places  for  the  glee  club  con 
cert.  It  was  one  of  the  charming  pictures  of  the 
year,  that  concert,  the  cluster  of  girls  on  the 
steps  facing  the  long  rows  of  well-filled  benches 
below.  Beyond  the  benches,  and  extending  far 
across  the  grass  to  the  very  steps  of  the  old 


HER  BOOK  253 


Dewey  House,  was  a  moving,  shifting  crowd, 
changing  in  form  and  color,  as  the  brightly- 
dressed  girls  came  and  went,  like  the  varying 
slides  of  a  kaleidoscope.  Back  of  the  glee  club, 
again,  the  open  windows  of  the  reading-room 
were  filled  with  faces  of  old  graduates  who  knew 
the  place,  and  who  chose  this  point  of  vantage 
either  to  protect  their  gowns  and  their  elderly 
necks  from  the  dampness  outside,  or  to  use  their 
position  facing  the  crowd  to  discover  returning 
classmates  whom  they  had  missed  in  the  throng. 

"  There  's  the  class  president,"  one  of  them 
said  to  a  friend  who  had  arrived,  only  that 
afternoon. 

"  Which  ? " 

"  That  tall  girl  in  pale  green  at  the  left. 
She  's  in  the  fourth,  fifth,  sixth  row ;  and  a  tall, 
gray-haired  man  is  with  her,  and  a  young  man 
the  other  side." 

"  Looking  this  way  now  ?" 

"  Yes.  I  don't  see  anything  so  remarkable 
about  her  ;  but  they  say  she  's  one  of  the  most 
popular  girls  they  've  ever  had  here." 

"  That  is  saying  a  good  deal,"  her  companion 
answered  loyally,  as  she  raised  her  lorgnette. 

"  They  wanted  her  for  ivy  poet,  but  she 
could  n't  be  everything.  She 's  class  poet, 


254  TEDDY 

though,  and  was  Portia  in  the  dramatics,  Sat 
urday  night." 

"  What 's  her  name  ? " 

"  McAlister.  Theodora  McAlister.  She  looks 
it,  too ;  but  these  soulless  girls  all  call  her 
Teddy." 

"  McAlister  ?  That  is  the  name  of  the  girl 
who  made  such  a  record  in  basket  ball,  when  I 
was  up  here,  last  winter.  They  had  a  song  in 
her  honor." 

"  Probably  it 's  the  same  one.  My  cousin  says 
she  is  very  all-round.  All  the  under-class  girls 
adore  her,  and  they  say  she  '11  be  heard  from, 
some  day.  Did  you  say  Edith  Avery  is  back  ? " 

Theodora,  meanwhile,  had  settled  her  guests 
comfortably  to  listen  to  the  concert.  They  were 
all  there,  Dr.  McAlister  and  his  wife,  Hope  and 
Hubert,  Phebe  and  Allyn,  and  the  Farringtons. 
Among  so  many  girls,  Hope,  in  her  pretty  pink 
gown,  was  quite  capable  of  holding  her  own ;  and 
Billy  and  Hubert  were  in  such  demand  that,  all 
that  day,  Theodora  had  scarcely  had  a  chance  to 
exchange  a  word  with  them.  It  was  just  as 
well,  however,  for  the  girl's  hands  were  full,  with 
the  active  part  which  her  offices  had  imposed 
upon  her. 

During  the  whole    week,  she  had  borne  her 


HER   BOOK  255 


part  admirably.  AVhen  she  came  out  on  the 
stage  for  the  first  time,  on  Saturday  night,  she 
had  faltered.  For  a  moment,  the  sea  of  up 
turned  faces  had  terrified  her,  and  she  could 
distinguish  nothing  but  a  formless  blur.  Then, 
all  at  once,  Billy's  red-gold  hair  and  clear  blue 
eyes  had  detached  themselves  and  caught  her 
attention,  and  she  flashed  upon  him  one  glance, 
half  proud,  half  appealing.  He  smiled  back  at 
her  broadly  and  waved  his  programme.  An  in 
stant  later,  she  was  speaking  her  opening  lines. 

She  had  led  the  baccalaureate  procession ; 
she  had  presided  at  the  ivy  exercises,  that  morn 
ing;  and  to-night,  at  the  reception  which  fol 
lowed  the  glee  club  concert,  she  was  expected 
to  show  herself  in  her  official  capacity.  The  next 
day,  she  would  lead  her  class  in  the  commence 
ment  procession,  and  preside  at  the  class  supper. 
No  wonder  that  she  was  tired,  and  that  dark  cir 
cles  were  beginning  to  come  beneath  her  eyes. 
Popularity  has  its  price,  though  it  is  a  price  well 
worth  the  paying.  It  had  come  to  her  unsought, 
unexpected,  and  she  enjoyed  it.  Still,  she  was 
undeniably  tired.  She  was  glad  for  the  moment 
to  settle  down  on  the  bench,  unnoticed  in  the 
crowd,  with  her  father's  arm  across  her  shoulder 
and  Hubert  by  her  other  side. 


256  TEDDY 

"  Tired  out,  Ted  ?"  her  father  asked  tenderly, 
as  she  nestled  against  him,  regardless  of  her 
finery. 

"  Oh,  no  ;  only  glad  of  a  chance  to  see  my 
people.  I  have  been  in  such  a  whirl,  all  the 
week,  that  I  feel  as  if  I  had  neglected  you." 

"  We  have  n't  suffered,  and  you  '11  rest  from 
the  whirl.  You  can't  be  graduated  but  once, 
my  girl,  and  I  want  you  to  have  the  best  of  it," 
he  said  proudly.  "  Next  year,  you  will  be  with 
us  again,  so  don't  worry  about  us  now." 

"  You  'd  better  sit  up  straight,  Teddy,"  Phebe 
said,  bending  forward  and  speaking  in  an  ag 
gressively  audible  whisper.  "  You  're  leaning 
against  your  dress,  and  that  thin  stuff  crushes 
awfully.  Do  be  careful." 

"  Never  mind,"  Theodora  answered,  with  a  lazy 
disregard  of  her  fluffy  sea  of  pale  green  chiffon. 
"  Papa  and  I  shall  never  be  here  again  just  like 
this,  and  I  mean  to  have  the  good  of  him." 

They  lingered  there  until  the  concert  was 
over  and  the  tide  was  turning  towards  the  Art 
Gallery.  Then  she  rose  reluctantly,  and  shook 
out  her  gown. 

"  Give  me  my  fan  and  my  gloves,  Hu,"  she 
said.  "  I  must  fly  to  my  post.  I  'd  much  rather 
stay  here." 


"  '  GIVE    MK    MY    TAX    AXD    GLOVES,    Hu,'    SHE    SAID." 

Page.  2">{ 


HER  BOOK  257 


As  she  turned  away,  a  young  man  abruptly 
took  leave  of  two  juniors,  and  went  hurrying 
after  her.  He  was  tall  and  alert,  yet  he  walked 
with  a  certain  stiffness,  which  gave  an  almost 
military  erectness  to  his  carriage. 

"  The  Philistines  be  upon  me,  Ted  !  Do  save 
me !  " 

She  turned  back  to  meet  him. 

"  What  is  the  matter,  Billy  ?  I  thought  you 
looked  content  while  the  concert  was  going 
on." 

"  Content !  I  'm  distracted.  I  've  been  intro 
duced  to  seven  thousand  girls.  They  all  look 
alike,  and  I  can't  tell  'em  from  those  I  don't 
know." 

"  Smile  on  them  all,  Billy.  You  're  equal  to 
it." 

"  But  I  don't  want  'em.  I  came  here  to  see 
you,  not  Miss  Swift  of  Chicago." 

"  You  don't  appreciate  your  advantages, 
Billy,"  she  said,  laughing,  as  they  went  together 
up  the  steps  of  the  Art  Gallery. 

"  Maybe  not.  I  appreciate  you,  though,  and 
I  sail,  in  ten  days.  When  shall  you  be  off  duty 
again  ?  " 

She  looked  down  at  the  throng  already  stream 
ing  up  the  steps  behind  them. 
17 


258  TEDDY 

"  Come  and  rescue  me  at  half-past  nine,  Billy, 
unless  you  find  Miss  Swift  of  Chicago  a  more 
potent  attraction." 

"  Trust  me !  "     And  he  vanished. 

For  more  than  an  hour,  the  stream  of  people 
flowed  past  her.  Everywhere  was  the  swish  of 
countless  gowns,  the  low  murmur  of  countless 
voices.  Every  one  was  there,  not  only  the  sen 
iors  and  their  friends,  but  the  girls  of  the  under 
classes,  with  here  and  there  a  wide-eyed,  wonder 
ing  sub-freshman.  Faculty  hobnobbed  with  sopho 
mores,  and  the  alumnae  pervaded  all  things 
and  were  in  their  glory.  It  was  a  pretty  picture, 
backed  as  it  was  by  the  dull-hued  walls  and  fine 
statuary  of  the  gallery ;  and  Theodora  glanced 
about  her  in  contented  pride,  to  see  if  any  of 
her  friends  were  near  and  enjoying  this  crown 
ing  glory  of  her  Alma  Mater. 

Ten  feet  away,  Mrs.  McAlister  was  discussing 
football  with  the  brother  of  one  of  the  seniors,  a 
boy  too  young  to  have  any  real  share  in  the  even 
ing's  pleasure.  Not  far  off,  Dr.  McAlister  was 
contentedly  ruffling  up  his  hair,  while  he  monopo 
lized  the  attention  of  a  prominent  professor,  who 
appeared  altogether  unconscious  of  the  passing 
moments  and  of  the  crowd  of  alumnge  waiting 
for  a  word.  Theodora  smiled  to  herself,  as  she 
caught  an  occasional  phrase,  — 


HER  BOOK  259 


"  All  the  bromides  —  Grand  antiseptic  quali 
ties  —  Your  essay  in  the  last  review." 

Out  on  the  stairs,  Hope  was  in  the  midst 
of  a  gay  crowd ;  and,  quite  at  the  other  side  of 
the  building,  Hubert  sat  on  the  pedestal  of  the 
Dying  Gaul,  with  one  arm  thrown  across  the 
neck  of  the  statue,  while  he  talked  to  the  pretty 
young  girl  perched  at  his  side. 

Punctual  to  the  moment,  Billy  appeared. 

"  Now  let 's  get  out  of  this,"  he  said  abruptly. 

"  Are  n't  you  having  a  good  time  ?  "  she  ques 
tioned,  with  a  little  hurt  tone. 

"  Yes,  fine.  I  struck  some  Cleveland  girls  ; 
they  're  always  pretty.  But  now  I  want  a 
breath  of  fresh  air  and  a  little  sensible  conver 
sation.  Come  along." 

"  Where  ? " 

"  Anywhere,  as  long  as  it 's  quiet." 

She  laughed,  as  she  handed  him  her  fan. 

"  I  believe  you  're  tired  before  I  am,  Billy." 

"  No ;  only  I  do  want  a  little  chance  to  see 
you.  It 's  not  as  if  I  were  going  to  be  at  home, 
this  summer." 

She  glanced  at  him  sharply.  Then  she  bit  her 
lip  a  little,  as  she  followed  him  through  the 
crowd  at  the  door,  and  out  upon  the  campus. 

"This   is  pretty,  for  a    fact,  Ted,"  he    said, 


260  TEDDY 

breaking  the  silence.  "Yale  can't  show  any 
thing  to  beat  this." 

"  That 's  very  generous  of  you,  Billy,"  she 
answered ;  but  her  tone  lacked  its  usual  vivacity, 
and  her  step  dragged  slightly,  as  they  moved 
away  together  among  the  Chinese  lanterns 
which  edged  the  walks  in  double  line. 

The  crowd  was  here,  too ;  but  Billy  steered 
her  through  it,  past  the  houses  and  the  old  gym 
nasium,  and  out  to  the  far  end  of  the  campus. 
At  the  steps  of  the  observatory,  he  halted. 

"  It 's  quiet  here,  and  we  can  get  some  good 
of  the  moon,"  he  said.  "Let's  sit  down  here, 
unless  you  are  afraid  of  taking  cold." 

"  The  idea !  1  'm  not  an  alum. ;  besides,  it 's 
a  warm  night." 

"  How  will  you  stand  two  commencements, 
Ted  ? "  he  asked,  settling  himself  at  her  feet 
and  turning  to  look  up  at  her. 

"  Better  than  my  gowns  will,"  she  said,  show 
ing  him  a  long  rent  in  her  skirt. 

He  laughed. 

"You  always  were  hard  on  your  clothes, 
Teddy.  I  shall  never  forget  the  sound  of  rending 
garments  which  heralded  your  first  approach." 

"  Out  of  the  apple-tree  ?  I  remember.  I  also 
remember  the  lecture  Hope  gave  me." 


HER  BOOK  261 


"  Those  were  good  old  days,"  he  said  content 
edly,  as  he  opened  and  shut  her  fan. 

"  These  are  better,"  she  answered,  looking 
down  at  him,  as  he  sat  there  in  the  moonlight. 
"  I  can't  make  it  seem  as  if  you  ever  lived  in  a 
chair." 

He  looked  up,  shaking  back  his  hair  with 
a  quick  motion  of  his  head. 

"  It 's  over  now,  thank  Heaven !  Still,  it 
brought  us  together,  after  all.  Teddy,  I  'm  going 
to  miss  you.  I  wish  I  need  n't  go." 

"  But  you  must,"  she  said  hastily,  startled  at 
something  in  his  tone.  "It  isn't  everybody 
who  has  the  double  chance  to  study  for  his  pro 
fession  and  to  be  treated  by  Dr.  Brunald,  at  the 
same  time." 

"  If  it  only  finishes  the  cure !  But  two  years 
is  such  a  long  time." 

"  Yes.  But  I  'm  going  down  with  your  mother 
to  see  you  off,  you  know  ;  and  then  you  '11  write 
often." 

"  Of  course.  But  so  much  can  happen  in  two 
years." 

"  I  hope  there  can.  Do  you  remember  my 
three  wishes  ?  " 

"  No.  Yes.  Seems  to  me  I  do.  What  were 
they?" 


262  TEDDY 

"  It  was  one  day,  under  the  trees  in  your 
grounds.  I  was  in  a  confidential  mood,  I  re 
member,  and  I  was  moved  to  tell  them  to  you. 
They  included  a  bicycle,  a  college  course,  and 
a  successful  career  of  authorship." 

"  I  remember.  You  've  two  of  them,  Ted ; 
and  I  believe  you  '11  get  the  other." 

"  Wait  till  you  come  home.  You  may  find 
me  no  nearer  the  end  than  I  am  now." 

"  I  doubt  it,  Teddy.  You've  the  stuff  in  you. 
Write  and  tell  me,  when  you  make  your  first  hit." 

"  I  will.  I  'in  counting  on  your  letters,  Billy, 
for  it's  going  to  be  very  lonely  without  you." 
Her  lip  quivered  again,  and  in  the  moonlight 
he  saw  an  odd  glitter  in  her  eyes. 

He  took  her  hand  in  his. 

"  Ted,"  he  said  gently ;  "  two  years  can't 
make  any  difference  in  such  a  friendship  as 
ours.  We  've  stuck  together  through  thick  and 
thin,  and  nothing  can  change  us.  Two  years 
is  n't  a  very  long  time  to  wait,  and  then,  please 
God,  I  shall  come  home  to  you  all,  a  strong 
man.  After  that,  I  shall  never  go  away  again 
—  to  leave  you,  dear." 

The  last  words  were  almost  inaudible.  Then 
the  silence  and  the  moonlight  closed  in  about 
them. 


HER  BOOK  263 


The  chapel  was  filled  to  overflowing,  the  next 
day,  as  the  procession  filed  up  the  middle  aisle. 
Led  by  the  white-gowned  ushers,  they  came 
slowly  onward,  faculty  and  trustees,  alumnse 
and  seniors,  while  above  and  around  them,  soft 
and  full  by  turns,  rose  the  sound  of  the  organ 
under  the  masterly  touch  they  knew  so  well.  It 
was  an  hour  when  even  the  most  heedless  fresh 
man  felt  the  pain,  the  almost  solemn  sadness  of 
the  coming  parting,  yet  the  full  meaning  of  the 
commencement  day  can  be  realized  only  by 
those  who  are  leaving  their  Alma  Mater  for  the 
last  time. 

All  too  soon,  the  morning  sped  away  and  the 
president  rose  to  confer  the  degrees,  while  a  hush, 
slight,  but  expectant,  crept  over  the  place. 

"  Quce  primum  gradum  accedunt" 

At  the  well-known  words,  the  seniors  rose, 
with  Theodora  standing  at  their  head.  The  girl 
was  very  pale,  and  her  eyes  looked  dark  and  liquid, 
as  she  raised  them  to  the  president's  face.  From 
his  seat  in  the  south  transept,  Billy  watched  her 
while  she  stood  there,  tall  and  straight  and  noble 
in  her  young  womanhood,  a  very  daughter  of 
to-day ;  and,  as  he  looked,  within  him  there 
strengthened  the  belief  which  had  been  slowly 
forming  and  guiding  his  life  ever  since  the  day,, 


264  TEDDY 

more  than  six  years  before,  when  Theodora  had 
come  down  to  him  from  the  old  apple-tree.  In 
all  those  tedious,  aching  years,  Theodora  had 
been  his  best  friend  ;  and  now  with  health  and 
with  her  before  him,  he  could  afford  to  work, 
and  wait,  and  hope. 


HER  BOOK  265 


CHAPTER  TWENTY-TWO 

TWO  years  had  passed  away,  and  The  Savins 
lay  basking  in  the  heat  of  an  August 
noon.  Here  and  there,  a  broad  calladium  leaf 
swayed  majestically  to  and  fro  in  a  passing 
breeze,  and  the  locusts  sang  shrilly  in  the  trees 
overhead.  Upstairs  in  her  own  room,  Theo 
dora  rocked  lazily,  humming  to  herself  while 
she  darned  her  stockings. 

"  Prosaic  work  !  "  she  said  aloud,  half  whimsi 
cally.  "  The  sure  forerunner  of  a  prosaic  spin- 
sterhood  !  My  plans  don't  seem  to  materialize 
rapidly,  and  I  foresee  that  I  shall  go  on  darning 
stockings  till  the  end  of  my  days.  Bah !  how 
I  hate  it !  "  She  rolled  up  her  stockings  into  a 
ball.  "  Two  years  ago,  and  I  was  saying  good- 
by  to  Billy  in  New  York,  and  we  were  making 
great  plans  for  what  we  were  to  accomplish. 
Dear  old  Billy  !  I  hope  he  's  quite  strong  by 
this  time.  It 's  almost  time  for  another  letter 
from  him,  seems  to  me." 


266  TEDDY 

She  tossed  the  ball  to  the  table  beside  her, 
and,  clasping  her  hands  above  her  rumpled  hair, 
fell  to  dreaming.  Phebe  interrupted  her. 

"A  letter  for  you,  Teddy  !"  she  proclaimed, 
opening  the  door  and  casting  the  envelope 
across  the  room  towards  her  sister. 

"  From  Billy  ?  " 

"  How  should  I  know  ?  I  don't  read  your 
letters." 

It  was  the  same  Phebe,  older  and  taller,  but 
otherwise  unchanged.  Now  her  tone  was 
slightly  toploftical. 

"  I  did  n't  suppose  you  did,"  Theodora  an 
swered,  while  she  rose  to  pick  up  the  letter. 
"  I  can't  say  you  are  over-ceremonious  with  it, 
Babe." 

"  Don't  care."  And  Phebe  vanished  as 
abruptly  as  she  had  come. 

The  letter  was  not  from  Billy.  The  hand 
writing  was  strange ;  and  Theodora  turned  it 
over  and  over  nervously,  before  she  ventured  to 
open  it.  Then  of  a  sudden  the  color  came  into 
her  cheeks,  and  her  eyes  flashed.  Seizing  the 
letter,  she  opened  the  door  and  ran  down  the 
stairs. 

"  Hope  !  Hu  !  Somebody  !  "  she  called,  with 
a  glad,  exultant  note  in  her  voice. 


HER  BOOR  267 


She  called  again.  Then  she  heard  Phebe's 
voice  from  the  lawn. 

"  I  am  here.     What  do  you  want  ?  " 

"  Where  is  everybody  ? "  Theodora  asked, 
stepping  out  on  the  piazza. 

"  I  'm  here."  Phebe's  accent  suggested  that 
her  feelings  were  hurt  at  the  question. 

"  Yes  ;  but  papa  and  mamma  ?  " 

«  Driving." 

"  And  Hope  ? " 

"  Mooning  round  with  Archie  somewhere." 

"  Where  's  Hu  ? " 

"  Gone  for  a  ride." 

"  Then  you  '11  be  the  first  to  hear  my  great 
news." 

"  Need  n't  tell  me,  unless  you  want.  I  don't 
care  to  be  taken  Jack-at-a-pinch." 

"  I  do  want  to  tell  you,  Babe.  I  only  thought 
I  would  wait  till  the  others  were  here  ;  but  1 
don't  believe  I  can  wait." 

"  What  is  it  ? "  Phebe  asked,  her  curiosity 
overcoming  her  momentary  pique  as  she  looked 
at  Theodora's  radiant  face. 

"  It 's  only  that  I  've  written  a  book  and  sent 
it  to  a  publisher,  and  he  says  it 's  good  enough 
to  publish." 

"  Really  ?     Really  and  truly  ?  "  Phebe's  face 


268  TEDDY 

expressed  her  incredulity.  "  Will  he  pay  you  a 
lot  for  it?" 

"  Something,  —  not  a  lot,  though,"  Theodora 
answered,  too  much  accustomed  to  Phebe's  lack 
of  sympathy  to  be  hurt  by  her  words.  "  But 
that 's  not  the  main  thing,  Babe.  Think  of  the 
honor  of  it !  " 

"  Hm  !  "  Phebe  said  slowly.  "  It 's  the  money 
I  'd  care  for,  Teddy.  Ever  so  many  people  have 
written  books  before,  and  some  of  them  younger 
than  you." 

Great  was  the  rejoicing  of  the  family,  that 
day,  when  Theodora  met  them  at  the  dinner- 
table  with  her  news.  In  the  clamor  of  question 
and  congratulation,  no  word  could  be  distin 
guished  at  first.  Then  Dr.  McAlister's  voice, 
clear  and  quiet,  hushed  the  others. 

"  Teddy,  dear,"  he  said  tenderly  ;  "  I  could  n't 
love  you  more  than  I  do  ;  but  this  makes  your 
old  father  very  proud  of  you.  I  wish  your  own 
mother  could  have  known  it." 

And  Mrs.  McAlister  added  softly, — 

"  Perhaps  she  does,  Jack." 

The  clamor  broke  out  again. 

"  When  did  you  —  ?  " 

"  How  did  you  ever  —  ?  " 

«  Why  did  n't  you  tell  us  that  —  ?  " 


HER  BOOK  269 


«  How  long—  ?" 

"  What  will  Billy  Farrington  say  ? "  Hope 
asked  at  length. 

"  He  '11  say,  '  Did  n't  I  always  tell  you  so  ?  '  " 
Hubert  answered,  smiling  across  the  table  at  his 
twin  sister. 

Afterwards  they  lingered  on  the  piazza,  talk 
ing  and  laughing,  begging  to  see  the  manuscript, 
teasing  Theodora  about  her  secretiveness,  and 
congratulating  her  again  and  again.  It  was  an 
attractive  group,  Theodora  in  the  midst,  a  tall, 
handsome  girl  in  the  full  ripeness  of  her 
maidenly  beauty,  her  arm  linked  in  that  of  her 
twin  brother,  while  pretty  Hope  stood  facing 
them,  with  Archie  at  her  side. 

Allyn  came  up  to  them  as  they  stood  there. 

"  Take  these,  Teddy,"  he  said,  holding  out  his 
hand. 

"  What  are  they,  Allyn  ?  "  she  asked,  loos 
ing  Hubert's  arm  as  she  bent  down  over  the 
child. 

"  Clovers,  four-leafed  ones.  They  will  bring 
you  luck,"  he  answered,  with  childish  super 
stition. 

"  How  many  you  find,  Allyn !  I  never  see 
any,"  she  said,  taking  the  handful  of  green 
leaves. 


270  TEDDY 

"  Put  them  in  your  belt,  and  the  first  man 
you  shake  hands  with,  you'll  marry,"  Phebe 
suggested  pertly. 

"  Not  I.  I  'm  doomed  to  old-maidhood,"  she 
said,  laughing. 

"  Give  them  to  Hope,  then,"  Phebe  said,  care 
less  of  Hope's  blushes. 

"  Never.  They  are  mine.  You  gave  them  to 
me,  did  n't  you,  Allyn  ?  " 

"Yes,"  the  child  said  gravely.  "You'd 
better  keep  them  and  put  them  in  your  belt. 
Hope  does  n't  need  them  as  much  as  you 
do." 

In  the  midst  of  the  laugh  that  followed, 
Theodora  went  away  to  her  room  to  write 
the  momentous  letter  which  should  accept  the 
publisher's  offer.  It  cost  her  some  pains  to 
write  it,  to  attain  the  proper  degree  of  indiffer 
ence,  equally  removed  from  coldness  and 
from  childish  eagerness.  The  clock  beside  her 
told  that  an  hour  had  passed  over  her  task,  and 
a  little  heap  of  torn  papers  lay  on  the  desk  before 
her  when  the  maid  came  to  call  her. 

"  There 's  some  one  in  the  parlor  to  see  you, 
Miss  Theodora." 
"Who?" 
"  He  did  n't  tell  me  his  name." 


HER  BOOK  £71 


"  Bother  take  him  !  "  Theodora  remarked  to 
herself.  Then  she  added  aloud,  "  Well,  I  '11  bo 
right  down." 

It  was  characteristic  of  Theodora  that  she 
delayed  to  give  no  glance  at  the  mirror.  Just 
as  she  was,  with  her  ruffled  hair  and  in  her 
simple  pink  morning  gown,  she  ran  down  the 
stairway  and  entered  the  cool,  dark  parlor.  As 
she  crossed  the  threshold,  the  guest  rose  to  greet 
her,  —  a  guest  with  a  tall,  athletic  figure,  a  sun* 
burned  face,  keen  blue  eyes,  and  a  mass  of  red 
dish  golden  hair. 

"  Billy  !  " 

"  Ted !  " 

"  Where  did  you  come  from  ?  " 

" '  The  Ankworks  package.'  " 

"  But  really  ?  " 

"  I  landed,  yesterday  afternoon.  I  was  bound 
to  give  you  a  surprise,  and  I  think  I  've  made  it 
out.  Glad  to  see  me  ?  " 

"  You  dear  old  boy !  Have  you  any  doubts 
about  it  ?  How  well  you  're  looking,  and  how 
—  how  stunning  !  " 

"  Ditto,  ma'am.  The  years  have  agreed  with 
you,  I  suspect." 

"  Yes.  And  you  ?  You  've  told  so  little  about 
yourself.  You  do  write  horrid  letters,  Billy." 


272  TEDDY 

"  Your  old  frankness,  I  observe,"  he  said 
mischievously. 

"  I  know  it ;  but  when  I  am  longing  to  hear  if 
you're  well  and  all  about  you,  you  write  reams 
of  student  gossip.  I  forgive  you,  though,  now  1 
see  you,  for  you  look  better  than  I  ever  supposed 
you  could." 

"  Not  much  like  the  flabby  chunk  of  flesh  that 
used  to  call  itself  Billy  Farrington  ?"  he  asked 
complacently. 

"  Not  a  bit,  you  giant ;  but  you  're  the  same 
old  Billy.  Is  it  polite  to  say  you  've  grown  ? 
Walk  off,  and  let  me  look  at  you." 

Turning,  he  made  a  few  quick  strides  up 
and  down  the  room,  laughing,  as  he  did  so, 
at  the  perfect  satisfaction  written  on  her  face. 
Then  he  came  back  and  took  her  hand  once 
more. 

"  Will  it  pass,  Teddy  ? "  he  asked,  looking 
down  at  the  tall  girl  beside  him. 

"  Yes,  in  every  way.  You  're  sure  you  are  as 
strong  as  ever  ?  " 

"  Sound  as  a  nut.  And,  by  Jove,  Ted,  after 
two  years  of  Dutch  Gretchens,  it  is  good  to  see 
you  again." 

Something  in  the  expression  of  the  blue  eyes 
above  her  made  her  own  eyes  droop.  Then 


SOMETHING  IN  THE  KXPRKSSION  OK  TIIK  BLUE  KYKS  ABOVE 

HER    MADE    HER    OWN    EYES    DROOP.  —  Pui/e.    '21'2. 


HER  BOOK  273 


suddenly  she  flushed  and  drew  away  her 
hand,  which,  all  this  time,  had  been  lying  in 
his  two  strong  brown  palms,  for,  as  she  looked 
down,  her  glance  had  chanced  to  fall  upon 
the  bunch  of  withered  leaves  which  still 
iii  her  belt. 


THE   END 


WANOLASSET 

THE-LITTLE-ONE-WHO-LAUGHS 

By  MISS  A.  G.  PLYMPTON 

Author  of  "  Dear  Daughter  Dorothy"  etc. 


\irno.     Cloth.     With  illustrations  by  the  author.    $1.25. 

A  story  of  colonial  life  in  New  England  during  King  Philip's  War, 
and  of  the  captivity  of  a  little  Medfield  maid,  to  whom,  on  account  of  her 
brave  spirit  and  sunny  temper,  the  Indians  gave  the  name  of  "  Wanolasset " 
—  meaning  "  The-little-one-who-laughs."  Much  historical  information  is 
cleverly  interwoven  with  the  story,  which  is  one  of  absorbing  interest.  The 
author  has  invested  her  youthful  characters  with  much  of  that  same  sweet 
ness  which  characterizes  "  Dear  Daughter  Dorothy,"  the  heroine  of  one  of 
her  earlier  books  ;  and  their  varying  fortunes  will  be  eagerly  followed.  — 
New  England  Magazine. 

It  is  a  story  of  boy  and  girl  life  in  a  Puritan  colony,  an  historical  romance, 
indeed,  for  young  people.  Miss  Plympton's  stories  are  always  prime  favor 
ites,  and  she  has  never  written  quite  so  good  a  one  as  this.  —  Providence 
News. 

The  tale  is  of  King  Philip's  War,  and  little  Alse's  capture  and  rescue 
are  given  with  an  eye  to  historical  accuracy  and  with  a  clearer  sense  o( 
justice  to  the  captors  than  characterized  the  "Indian  stories"  of  twenty 
years  ago.  Out  of  all  this  careful  study  of  facts,  combined  with  literary 
skill,  the  child  of  to-day  ought  to  get  a  fair  idea  of  pioneer  life.  —  Lot 
Angeles  Express. 

The  story  is  such  a  one  as  children  delight  in,  and  is  withal  so  simple, 
sweet,  and  wholesome  that  no  better  gift  could  be  chosen  for  any  child.  -• 
Lexington  (Ky.)  Herald. 


THE  CHICOPEE  SERIES 

BY   MYRA   SAWYER   HAMLIN 


"  NAN." 


NAN    AT    CAMP    CHICOPEE;    OR,    NAN'S    SUMMER   WITH 
THE    BOYS. 

The  story  is  one  of  free,  outdoor  life,  characterized  by  a  deal  of  fine 
descriptive  writing  and  many  bits  of  local  color  that  invest  the  whole  book 
with  an  atmosphere  which  is  actually  fragrant ;  the  entire  story  is  as  fresh 
and  as  clear  and  as  bright  as  if  some  of  the  breezes  of  "  Lake  Chicopee" 
had  blown  straight  through  it  from  cover  to  cover  and  left  their  odors 
of  flowery  pastures  and  pine  woods  and  New  Hampshire  air  on  every 
page.  —  Bangor  Commercial. 

NAN     IN     THE     CITY;    OR,    NAN'S    WINTER    WITH    THE 
GIRLS. 

A  bright  story  in  which  children  and  animals  play  an  equal  part.  — 
The  Outlook. 

It  is  a  charmingly  entertaining  book  from  cover  to  cover,  and  in  every 
way  entitled  to  a  wide  constituency  of  young  readers.  The  story  is  well 
told  and  the  atmosphere  is  healthful  and  uplifting,  while  there  is  a  plot  to 
keep  the  interest  aroused,  and  around  the  central  figure  of  the  story  the 
reader's  affection  and  good-will  is  bound  to  cling,  for  the  heroine  is  a  type 
of  young  girl  such  as  makes  the  world  brighter  and  happier  for  her 
presence.  —  Boston  Budget. 

NAN'S  CHICOPEE  CHILDREN.     (Completing  The  Chicopee  Serifs.) 
i6mo.     Cloth.     Illustrated.     Each,  $1.25. 


TWIXT  YOU  AND  ME 

A  STORY  FOR  GIRLS 

BY  GRACE  LE  BARON 

Author  of  "  Little  Miss  Faith,"  "  Little  Daughter,"  "  The 
Rosebud  Club"  and  "  Queer  Janet " 


I2mo.     Cloth.     With  pictures  by  Ellen  Bernard  Thompson 
and  floral  decorations  by  Katherine  Pyle.     $1.50 

This  new  book  by  an  author  whose  other  stories  have  been  written  for 
younger  children  will  win  a  warm  place  in  the  hearts  of  girl  readers,  and 
its  two  principal  characters,  Rosemary  and  Daisy,  are  likely  to  be  very 
popular.  The  events  of  the  story  occur  in  two  summers  at  the  seashore 
and  in  two  terms  at  the  "  Misses  Bagley's  Fashionable  Boarding-School." 
The  author  has  interwoven  with  the  story  a  very  charming  garland  of 
poems  of  flowers. 


BELLE 

A  New  Book  by  the  author  of  "  Miss  Toosefs  Mission* 


\6rno.     Cloth.     Illustrated.     $1.00 


THE 

LITTLE  RED  SCHOOLHOUSE 

BY  EVELYN   RAYMOND 

Author  of ""  The  Little  Lady  of  the  Horse"  "  Among 
the  Lindens?'  eh. 


\-zmo.     Cloth.     Illustrated  by  Victor  A.  Searles.     $1.50 

As  the  title  indicates,  the  country  school  is  the  feature  of  the  book 
which  has  suggested  much  of  its  plot,  and  the  author  has  woven  a  delight 
ful  narrative,  sensible  and  practical,  and  at  the  same  time  interesting  and 
uplifting,  which  will  be  welcomed  by  the  young  people.  —  CongregOt 
tionalist. 


AMONG  THE  LINDENS 

BY  EVELYN  RAYMOND 

Author  of  "  The  Little  Lady  of  the  Horse,"  "  A  Cape  May 

Diamond"  "  The  Mushroom  Cave"  "  The 

Little  Red  Sckoolhouse,"  etc. 


\2rno.     Cloth.     Illustrated  by  Victor  A.  Searles. 


.50 


The  scene  of  Evelyn  Raymond's  new  story  is  partly  in  New  York  and 
partly  in  the  country  "  among  the  lindens."  A  poor  family  is  assisted  by 
a  wealthy  friend  in  the  best  possible  way,  —  he  helps  them  to  help  them 
selves.  The  youngest  boy  is  the  life  of  the  story,  something  of  an  amus 
ing  and  exceedingly  lively  nature  happening  to  him  every  day  of  his  life. 
The  children  of  the  story  have  faults,  but  strive  to  correct  them,  and  have 
healthy  and  noble  ideals  of  life  and  character.  There  is  an  exceptionally 
pleasant,  homelike  atmosphere  about  the  book, 


THE  YOUNG  PURITANS 

IN  KING  PHILIP'S  WAR 

A  sequel  to  "  The  Young  Puritans  of  Old  Hadley  " 

BY  MARY  P.  WELLS  SMITH 
Author  of"  The  Jolly  Good  Times  Series,"  etc. 


I2mo.     Cloth.     Illustrated  by  L.  J.  Bridgman.     $1.25 

This  is  the  second  volume  in  "  The  Young  Puritans  Series."  The 
author  has  made  a  very  careful  stud}'  of  the  Colonial  life  and  history  of 
the  time.  Like  the  first  volume  of  the  series,  her  attempt  to  depict  the 
life  of  Puritan  children  for  young  people  is  closely  based  on  historical 
facts.  These  volumes  should  be  read  carefully  and  studied  by  the  children 
of  to-day,  recounting,  as  they  do,  the  hardships  endured  by  their  forefathers 
and  foremothers  in  the  settlement  of  this  country,  as  well  as  their  devotion, 
high  aims,  and  religious  zeal.  The  third  volume  of  the  series  will  be 
devoted  to  "  The  Young  Puritans  in  Captivity." 


HESTER  STANLEY'S  FRIENDS 

A  sequel  to  "  Hester  Stanley  at  St.  Mark's  " 

BY  HARRIET  PRESCOTT  SPOFFORD 


\2tno.   Cloth.     Illustrated  by  Frank  T.  Merrill.    $1.25 

Mrs.  Spofford's  new  book  includes  the  following  stories,  dealing  with 
the  same  characters  as  those  of  her  delightful  volume  of  schoolgirl  life 
entitled  "  Hester  Stanley  at  St.  Mark's  "  :  Bella's  Choice ;  A  Christmas 
that  was  Christmas;  Jule's  Garden;  April  Showers;  Rafe  ;  The  Little 
Black  Fiddle;  Billy  and  his  Grandmother;  Remade;  The  Fourth  at 
Marcia  Meyer's  ;  Little  Rosalie ;  At  Old  Benbow. 

A  NEW  EDITION  OF  "  HESTER  STANLEY  AT  ST.  MARK'S" 

Uniform  with  the  above.    Illustrated.    \irno.    Cloth.   $1.25 
The  tivo  volumes,  in  a  box,  $2.50 


